The Suez Canal discounts meant that many ships visiting the East Coast of the United States, instead of returning to the west coast by Panama, do so through the Egyptian route, representing a loss of about $ 600,000 each time, he revealed.
The new locks, opened on June 26th, allowed the crossing of ships known as Post-Panamax or Neo-Panamax, whose dimensions exceed 294 meters in length and 32.3 meters in width.
Another element affecting profits at the facility is the bankruptcy of the shipping company South Korean Hanjin Shipping.
The company ships are being diverted through other routes meaning that the Canal does not receive ‘significant’ amounts of money, according to the source.
At present there are two vessels owned by the South Korean company waiting for the economic situation of the company to be resolved, they will cross at a cost of ‘nearly 700,000 dollars’ each, Quijano said.
The Norwegian ship Höegh Target, the largest car carrier in the world, yesterday began a route through the Interoceanic Canal.