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Why can some of the largest oil tankers not use the Suez Canal?

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Cargo ships travel along the wide Suez Canal in Egypt, bordered by sandy desert on one side and greenery on the other. — Suez Canal Ships in the Suez Canal in Egypt. One of the world's most important shipping lanes, the Suez Canal connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea.

Some of the largest oil tankers, specifically Ultralarge crude carriers (ULCCs) and many Very large crude carriers (VLCCs), cannot use the Suez Canal because their physical dimensions exceed the canal's capacity.12

While the canal has undergone numerous expansions to accommodate larger vessels—including deepening the channel to 22 meters (72 feet)—it remains limited by its depth and width. Tankers are categorized by their ability to transit these waterways; "Suezmax" vessels are specifically designed as the largest ships capable of navigating the canal, with a capacity of 120,000 to 200,000 deadweight tons (dwt). In contrast, ULCCs and the largest VLCCs are significantly longer and heavier, often carrying over 300,000 dwt. Because these "supertankers" are too large to pass through the canal, they must instead travel around the Cape of Good Hope to reach their destinations.312