The Panama Canal has set another record with transporting 36.1m of tonnes (Panama Canal tonnes PC/UMS) during the month of January 2017. During the month the canal registered the transit of 1,260 ships through both the expanded and original locks.
The previous record was set in December 2016, when 1,166 ships transited the waterway for a total of 35.4m PC/UMS tonnes. Prior to the inauguration of the expanded canal on 26 June 2016, the monthly tonnage record was 30.4m PC/UMS, which was set in October 2014.
Seven months after the beginning of operations, the expanded Canal has already transited more than 750 neo-panamax vessels – more than 50% of which were container ships. In addition, the new locks have LPG and LNG vessels, as well as bulk carriers, tankers and vehicle carriers.
LNG vessels, which could not transit in the original locks, are now regular sight at the Panama Canal and a new item in the customers’ list.
In April 2017, the expanded Canal will receive its first neo-panamax cruise vessel. Neo-panamax passenger vessels are capable of transporting up to 4,000 passengers, nearly twice as much as the panamax vessels able to transit the original locks.
“This increase reiterates the importance of the expanded Canal,” said the Panama Canal administrator Jorge L. Quijano.
This week, Friday 17 February, the Panama Canal Authority will receive the proposals for the construction of a new container terminal at Corozal. Four international port operators have pre-qualified: APM Terminals; Terminal Link; PSA International, and Terminal Investment Limited.