The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) foresees more than 1,500 fewer vessel transits for the upcoming fiscal year as it faces recurring droughts, according to a media report.
Minister of canal affairs Aristides Royo said ACP is expected to lower the number of deep-draught crossings by 1,515 ships during the fiscal period from 1 October 2023 to 30 September 2024, compared to the current fiscal year, according to a report by Panamanian newspaper La Prensa.
Royo attributed the ACP’s decision to three “extreme dry events” happening in the last decade that have forced the canal to implement water-saving measures, according to La Prensa.
During the ACP’s annual budget presentation, he said the ACP could lose $200m as a result of the denied transits. The 2023-2024 spending package totalled $4.78bn.
In response to ongoing drought conditions, the ACP has limited the number of daily ship transits to 32 vessels and lowered the draught limit in the neopanamax locks to 13.41 metres, among other restrictions.
As a result, ships have lined up on both sides of the canal while waiting for days to cross it. Other vessels have opted to skip the canal at the expense of taking much longer voyages.
As of Monday, there were 96 panamaxes and 23 neopanamaxes waiting to cross the canal, according to Leth Agencies.
Transit waiting times were as high as 11 days for ships crossing from the Pacific basin to the Atlantic basin, while they were as high as 12 days for vessels transiting in the opposite direction.
