Cargo ships could save thousands by skipping the Suez Canal

The low price of oil is allowing cargo vessels to avoid the costly tariffs of the Suez and Panama canals and take the long way round Africa instead, according to a new report.

The report released this month by maritime trade analysts SeaIntel found that, since October last year, 115 vessels transporting goods from Asia to North Europe and the U.S. east coast sailed around South Africa on their return journey, instead of using a canal.

Falling fuel prices mean the ships could afford to take the longer route at a faster speed, thus taking the same amount of time as using the canal, the report found.

According to SeaIntel, using the South Africa route would save on average $235,000 per voyage, which would be a huge boost for cash-strapped carriers.

"Further savings could almost certainly be achieved if the carriers moved some of the intermediate calls to other services or slowed down the speed of the backhaul leg," the report said.

This is a bad sign for the Panama and Suez canals.

Last year, Egypt completed an $8.5 billion expansion of the canal to allow two lanes of traffic and reduce transit time through the Suez Canal.