The Operators Of The Ever Given May Be Forced To Unload Its 18,000 Cargo Containers Onto Other Ships, Report Says

The Ever Given, a Panama-flagged cargo ship, is seen in the Suez Canal in Egypt, on March 27, 2021. Photo by Samuel Mohsen/picture alliance via Getty Images The operators of the Ever Given might move its containers onto other ships, according to a report. The ship is unable to deliver its goods until $1 billion in damages is paid to Egyptian authorities. But transporting the containers could become a physical, legal, and logistical nightmare. See more stories on Insider's business page. The operators of the Ever Given ship are exploring the possibility of transferring its 18,000 cargo-filled containers to other vessels as it remains stuck in legal limbo, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.The 224,000-ton cargo ship, which ran aground in the Suez Canal on March 23 and was freed 6 days later, still hasn't been able to leave the Suez Canal after Egyptian authorities announced it must first pay $1 billion in damages.But the ship's operator, Taiwanese company Evergreen Marine Corp., is facing increasing pressure to deliver its thousands of containers - filled with everything from toilet paper to coffee and furniture - to its frustrated customers.Read more: The 4 biggest losers of the Suez Canal fiasco - and 4 surprising winners"Customers are asking when their boxes will be delivered after the ship seizure, and the prospect of moving the containers to other ships and delivering them to the clients in Europe is now on the table," an unnamed source, directly involved in the matter, told the Wall Street Journal.But any efforts to remove the 18,000, 20-foot container units from the Ever Given could become a massive physical and logistical challenge, possibly requiring officials to move the vessel, which is currently anchored in the canal's artificial Great Bitter Lake, to the nearby city of Port Said.