PanamaTimes

Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Expansion of the Panama Canal is five years old

Expansion of the Panama Canal is five years old

The competitiveness of the Panama Canal has been consolidated by facilitating the transit of larger ships with a safe, continuous and reliable service.
The expansion of the Panama Canal celebrates its fifth anniversary this Saturday, June 26, since it began operations.

The administrator of the Canal of Panama , Ricaurte Vasquez said that consolidated the competitiveness of Panama to the easy route transit of larger vessels with a safe, continuous and reliable service, as well as the contribution to strengthening the contributions of the The interoceanic route to the country is clear and unquestionable.

The Canal expansion, which was inaugurated on June 26, 2016 with the transit of the neopanamax vessel Cosco Shipping Panama, consisted of the construction of two new lock complexes in the Pacific and the Atlantic, creating a third transit lane for neopanamax vessels. along the interoceanic waterway.

“In these five years, we have gone from the learning stage to the consolidation phase of an efficient and safe service to our clients, while increasing our direct contributions to the country through the National Government by virtue of the operation of the new locks, ”said Vásquez.

He explained that since the first transit through the Neopanamax locks, 13,700 ships have crossed the Canal approximately, representing 28% of the transits in this period, these transits represented 54% of the cargo volume and 58% of the toll revenues of the Channel.

Likewise, Ilya Espino de Marotta, deputy administrator of the Canal, stated that adding a third transit lane with capacity for larger vessels has also strengthened the competitiveness of the service offered by the Panama Canal, contributing economies of scale and attracting new markets such as the of liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships, to the point of ranking fourth in number of transits in the neopanamax locks.

He explained that container ships continue to be the main client of the expanded Canal with 42% of transits; followed by liquefied petroleum gas vessels, 22%; dry bulk carriers, 15%; and LNG, 14%.

"When we envisioned the expansion, we thought that the maximum capacity of the container ships that we would serve would be 12,000 containers, but today we transit ships with the capacity to load up to a little more than 15,000 containers," said Espino de Marotta.

He added that, being shorter, the route through Panama plays an important role in reducing greenhouse gases, and the neopanamax locks have allowed savings of approximately 40 million tons of carbon dioxide since 2016, through facilitate the transport of more cargo in fewer trips.

“The service of the Panama Canal to its clients has also been strengthened with the recent increase in the length allowed in the Neopanamax locks. Last May, shipping companies were notified that the maximum length (length) at the Neopanamax locks went from 367.28 meters (1,205 feet) to 370.33 meters (1,215 feet). The increase means that now a large part (96.8%) of the world's container ship fleet can transit by water ”, he added.
Comments

Captain 3 year ago
This is nonsense. They were told at the time that the new expansion was too small to allow for then existing 18,000 TEU container vessels and that these would increase to circa 25000 in the foreseeable future. This advice given by professionals was ignored. Now the canal can only handle about 30% of the global container fleet and soon that will drop to 15% as the larger vessels continue to be put in service. This is a dirty little secret and the canal administration is softening up the public for a new expansion requirement due to this “unforeseen “ growth in larger vessels. The new canal was redundant on opening day unlike its predecessor which was good for a hundred years. They should get fired for this dreadful error and shows what happens when you have a board comprised of political appointees as opposed to professional advisors.

Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
Apple warns against drying iPhones with rice
In a recent High Court hearing, the U.S. argued that Julian Assange endangered lives by releasing classified information.
Global Law Enforcement Dismantles Lockbit Ransomware Operation
Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has died at the Arctic prison colony
The President of Argentina Javier Mile does not fly private, he flies commercial, with the citizens he represents. And they LOVE him for it.
Bitcoin Reaches $50,000 for First Time in Over Two Years
Belo Horizonte: Brazil's Rising Carnival Hotspot for 2024
In El Salvador, the 'Trump of Latin America' stuns the world with a speech slamming woke policing after winning a landslide election
Tucker’s interview with Putin is over 50M views on X within the first 5 hours.
Finnish Airline, Finnair, is voluntarily weighing passengers to better estimate flight cargo weight
President Nayib Bukele has proudly announced El Salvador's remarkable achievement of becoming the safest nation in the Western Hemisphere.
Former Chilean President Sebastian Piñera Dies in Helicopter Crash
This farmer seems to understand science a bit more than the event organizer, Klaus Schwab.
Facebook turns 20: From Mark Zuckerberg's dormitory to a $1trn company
The Coolest Dictator in the World" on the Path to Victory in El Salvador
Macron, France and fake news
Indian-Origin Man 'King' Arrested For Smuggling $16 Million Drugs Into US
Can someone teach Americans that not every person with slanted eyes is Chinese?
Europe's Farmers Feeding the People, Protesting Against Politicians Who Do Nothing for Their Country and Serve Only Themselves at Taxpayers' Expense
Paris Restaurant That Inspired 'Ratatouille' Loses $1.6 Million Worth Of Wine
Brazilian Police Investigate Bolsonaro's Son for Alleged Illegal Spying
Police in Brazil Raid Residence of Bolsonaro Associate Over Allegations of Illegal Spying
Border Dispute Escalates as Texas Governor Vows Increased Razor Wire
OpenAI Enhances ChatGPT-4 Model, Potentially Addressing AI "Laziness" Issue
The NSA finally acknowledges spying on Americans by acquiring sensitive data
Report Reveals Toxic Telegram Group Generating X-Rated AI-Generated Fake Images of Taylor Swift
US Border Patrol States 'No Plans' to Remove Razor Wire Installed in Texas
Bitcoin Experiences Approximately 20% Decline in Value
Klaus Schwab recently appointed himself as the Earth's "trustee of the future."
DeSantis Drops Out, Endorses Trump.
Nikki Haley said former President Trump is "just not at the same level" of mental fitness as he was while president in 2016.
Residents of a southern Mexican town set the government palace on fire in response to the police killing of a young man
Samsung Launches AI-Driven Galaxy S24, Ushering in New Smartphone Era
Judge Questions SEC's Regulatory Overreach in Coinbase Lawsuit
The Ecuador prosecutor who was investigating the television studio attack, has been assassinated.
Is artificial intelligence the solution to cyber security threats?
Vivek Ramaswamy suspends his US election campaign and endorses Trump.
Viral Satire: A Staged Satirical Clip Mistaken as Real Footage from the 2024 World Economic Forum in Davos
The AI Revolution in the Workforce: CEOs at Davos Predict Major Job Cuts in 2024
Ecuador Reports 178 Hostages in Prison Gang Standoff
The Startling Cuban Espionage Case That Has Rattled the US Government
Two Armed Men in Ecuador, Dressed as Batman and The Joker Storm the Streets.
Armed Gang Raids Ecuadorian TV Station Following State of Emergency Declaration
Anti-Democratic Canada: Journalist Arrested for Questioning Canadian Finance Minister on Support of Terrorist Group
Ecuador's 'Most-Wanted' Criminal Vanishes from Prison
Mexican Cartel Supplied Wi-Fi to Locals Under Threat of Fatal Consequences for Non-Compliance
Border Surge Leads to Over 11,000 Migrants Waiting in Northern Mexico
Outsider Candidates Triumph in Latin American Elections
As Argentina Goes to the Polls, Will the Proposal to Replace the Peso with the Dollar Secure Votes?
Fatal Shark Attack Claims Life of Boston Woman Paddleboarding Near Bahamas Resort, According to Police
×