Geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East have driven up oil prices, putting pressure on cross-border shipping of large pile foundation equipment such as rotary drilling rigs

The passage of waterways is obstructed, and the traditional main shipping routes in the Middle East are almost stagnant

After the joint strike by the United States and Saudi Arabia against Iraqi militia armed groups, the military confrontation in the Middle East region continues to escalate, and the risk of shipping safety in the Strait of Hormuz has sharply increased. The daily cargo volume in the strait has dropped to single digits, and the large shipping channel that originally relied on this waterway to travel between Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa has basically come to a standstill. Rotary drilling rigs and pile drivers are oversized and overweight engineering components that cannot be easily disassembled. Transportation must rely on special vessels such as heavy lift ships and semi submersible ships, which have strict requirements for stable waterways and coastal port operating conditions. The normalization of air defense warning along the coast of the strait and the disorder of maritime dispatch order along the coast have resulted in a large number of pile foundation equipment waiting to go out to sea being stranded at domestic departure ports and transit ports in the Middle East. The fixed sea transportation link directly to the Persian Gulf has been forced to be interrupted, and large equipment has lost convenient mainstream transportation channels. The supply of basic sea transportation capacity has been greatly reduced.

The entire line was forced to detour around Cape of Good Hope, resulting in a significant extension of the equipment delivery cycle

In order to avoid the risks of drone attacks and maritime exchanges, mainstream shipping companies around the world have abandoned the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea shortcut, and all engineering equipment ships sent to the Middle East, Southern Europe, and North Africa will detour around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. Compared to the original direct route, the detour has increased the distance by nearly 40%, and the one-way travel time is 10 to 14 days longer. Most pile foundation equipment is shipped naked by sea, and the cost of dismantling and reassembling is high. The use of separate transportation mode is rare. Long sea voyages not only disrupt the established order delivery rhythm of export enterprises, but also cause chain problems such as idle construction personnel and stagnant pile foundation construction in overseas infrastructure projects due to the delayed arrival of pile drivers. The risk of breach of contract in overseas construction projects continues to increase.

The sharp rise in oil prices combined with geopolitical premiums has led to a continuous increase in comprehensive logistics costs for large items

International oil prices have surged nearly 4% due to concerns about Middle Eastern supply, and the prices of marine fuel oil have also risen, directly increasing the operational burden of high energy consuming special vessels. The fuel consumption of heavy lift ships carrying rotary drilling rigs during the entire voyage is much higher than that of ordinary container ships, and fuel expenses account for more than 30% of the total cost of large-scale sea transportation. Every round of oil price increases will directly drive up freight rates. At the same time, shipping companies have added dual fees such as war risk surcharges and diversion surcharges, coupled with a doubling of maritime war insurance costs. The overall logistics expenses for a single rotary drilling rig for transoceanic sea transportation have increased by 30% to 40% compared to before. The continuous increase in costs has compressed the profit margin of engineering machinery exports, making it more difficult for enterprises to quote prices to the outside world, and the competitiveness of overseas market orders has declined.

The risk of maritime navigation is superimposed, and the hidden danger of storage and transportation losses of large precision equipment is increasing

The sea voyage is inexplicably extended, and prolonged oceanic turbulence and seawater moisture erosion will exacerbate the wear and tear of the hydraulic system, precision drill rods, and electronic control components of the rotary drilling rig. In the past, short distance waterway navigation could quickly reach the destination port, and the offshore storage period of equipment was relatively short; Nowadays, the detour is long, and the workload for rust prevention and fastening protection of equipment has doubled. In addition, piracy activities have increased in the Gulf of Guinea and the waters off the coast of South Africa, leading to more potential risks of navigation accidents on long-distance routes. Once there are ship malfunctions or severe weather delays along the way, it is highly likely to cause equipment damage and collision. After arrival, the maintenance and debugging cycle will increase again, further dragging down the efficiency of project implementation.

Shipping capacity turnover slows down, and booking of large cargo spaces becomes increasingly tight

The vessel's circumnavigation has extended the duration of a single round trip, and the annual turnover frequency of heavy lift ships has significantly decreased. The market continues to tighten the allocation of large sea freight space. During the peak season for exporting construction machinery, it is difficult to schedule temporary shipment orders in a timely manner as it requires a longer advance reservation to lock in the ship space that is suitable for the size of the rotary drilling rig. Some logistics service providers choose low-speed navigation to reduce fuel consumption, further extending the overall transportation efficiency. The rising costs and delayed delivery create a two-way pressure, forcing construction machinery foreign trade enterprises to re plan their overseas shipping pace and regional market layout.

The industry is forced to adjust its logistics layout, and multimodal transport solutions are gradually being implemented

The vulnerability of a single shipping channel has been fully exposed, and the industry has begun to explore diversified logistics paths to avoid geopolitical risks. Many exporters are trying to rely on Oman ports for transshipment, and after unloading the goods, they are transported by land to Gulf countries in order to bypass high-risk straits; The Central Asian land China Europe freight train has also been included as a candidate, gradually promoting the multimodal transportation mode of public rail sea for inland customers in West Asia. Although land intermodal transportation incurs higher costs per trip, its advantages lie in stable delivery time and less geographical interference, making it an important way to hedge against maritime turbulence. The global logistics landscape for large-scale engineering equipment is undergoing structural adjustments.