Suez Canal

SuezCanal-EO.JPG

Specifications

Length 193 km (120 miles)

(originally 164 km or 102 mi)

Maximum boat beam 77.5 m (254 ft 3 in)

Minimum boat draft 20.1 m (66 ft)

Minimum boat air draft 68 m (223 ft)

Locks None

Navigation authority Suez Canal Authority

History

Original owner Suez Canal Company (Compagnie Universelle du Canal Maritime de Suez)

Construction began 25 September 1859

Date completed 17 November 1869

Geography

Start point Port Said

End point Port Tewfik, Suez

The southern terminus of the Suez Canal at Suez on the Gulf of Suez (Red Sea)

The Suez Canal (Arabic: قناة السويس‎ qanāt as-suwēs) is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez. Constructed by the Suez Canal Company between 1859 and 1869, it was officially opened on 17 November 1869. The canal offers watercraft a shorter journey between the North Atlantic and northern Indian Oceans via the Mediterranean and Red Seas by avoiding the South Atlantic and southern Indian Oceans, reducing the journey by approximately 7,000 kilometres (4,300 mi). It extends from the northern terminus of Port Said to the southern terminus of Port Tewfik at the city of Suez. Its length is 193.30 km (120.11 mi), including its northern and southern access channels. In 2012, 17,225 vessels traversed the canal (average 47 per day).[1]