Two LPG carriers turned around within miles of the Panama Canal at the weekend as authorities reduced the number of available slots because of falling water levels.
The 82,200-cbm Pyxis Pioneer (built 2019) and 78,900-cbm Sunny Bright (built 2004), both VLGCs, moved away from the canal mouth after the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) reduced the number of slots from 32 to 25 per day. It went down to 24 on Tuesday, the authority said.
The crisis has been caused by the lowest rainfall in the area since 1950 which has seen the levels of the Gatun Lake that feeds the canal decline to unprecedented levels.
Ship tracking data showed the Kumiai Navigation-owned and operated, the Pyxis Pioneer was heading south towards the southern tip of the Americas on Wednesday.
The Sunny Bright, which is owned and operated by Japan’s Eneos Ocean Corp, remained off the coast of Ecuador, according to Kpler shipping data.
The ships were on ballast legs. Kumiai Navigation and Eneos Ocean have been contacted for comment.
Shipbroker Braemar said bookings for the canal prioritise passenger and container ships, with tankers and gas carriers most likely to miss out.
The canal helps LPG producers in the US Gulf reach Asian markets more quickly.
“It is likely tankers and gas carriers will now be forced to reroute from their typical transit patterns, opting for longer routes through the Suez Canal, Cape Horn, or the Cape of Good Hope, increasing tonne-mile demand,” the shipbroker said in a note.
“In addition, tankers are now less willing to move cargo from the US Gulf to the West Coast South America due to the long ballast back to the US Gulf avoiding the canal.”
Fearnley Securities reported a record auction price of $2.85m for transiting the canal last week, compared with a normal booking fee of about $900,000.
The ACP offers one or two vacant crossing times through the neo-panamax locks to the highest bidder each day. The auctions are generally won by LNG or LPG carriers.
The slots are set to continue reducing to 22 in December, 20 in January and then to just 18 in February.
Read more
- DNB raises VLGC demand forecast but owners ‘not out of the woods’ on deliveries
- ‘Who knows?’: Dorian LPG’s Hadjipateras says future of VLGC Panama Canal transits uncertain
- NYK Line’s first half profit slashed by over 80% on liner weakness
- Dorian LPG stays flexible on fleet renewal as earnings hit new record
- Panama Canal auction smashes vessel transit record as slot goes for $2.85m
