Panama Canal Extends Long-Term Booking Program, Applies It to Panamax Locks

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announced a new phase of its Long-Term Slot Allocation program (LoTSA 3.0) covering the period from January 3 to April 3, 2027. The scheme will remain in effect for the Neopanamax locks and, for the first time, will be extended as a pilot program to the Panamax locks, with the goal of giving more customers greater certainty ahead of the upcoming dry season.

For the Neopanamax locks, 36 packages will be offered totaling 270 transit slots, split into 165 northbound and 105 southbound, at a rate of three slots per day. The Panamax pilot will offer 51 packages equivalent to 288 slots, divided into 147 northbound and 141 southbound transits, also at a pace of roughly three per day. Both processes will be awarded through sealed-bid auctions: the Neopanamax auction will take place on November 17, 2026, and the Panamax pilot auction on November 24, 2026.

LoTSA was launched in September 2025 and allows customers to secure transit slots in advance during the dry season, strengthening itinerary planning and supply chain reliability. The ACP noted that this expansion is particularly relevant in the current operating context, as the Canal continues to implement measures to ensure the sustainability of operations amid weather conditions affecting water availability. The scheme does not replace the daily booking and auction system, whose remaining capacity will continue to be marketed through those channels.

The mechanism builds on the future booking block system introduced in 2024 for the larger locks following the severe 2023-24 drought, and the need for certainty intensified this year. In May, Neopanamax auction prices reached $4 million due to the rerouting of U.S. energy cargoes to Panama following disruptions in the Middle East, and in August an LPG carrier paid a record $5.3 million for transit priority, while the Canal cut daily booking capacity to 32 vessels and adjusted draft limits amid insufficient rainfall, before recent precipitation allowed some restrictions to be eased.

At the same time, the ACP reported that, effective October 15, 2026, it will increase the daily capacity of the Neopanamax locks from nine to ten booking slots, citing improved water conditions and favorable hydrological projections, which will bring the Canal's total daily capacity to 33 slots between Neopanamax and Panamax. The authority also adjusted the maximum authorized draft for Neopanamax transits to 14.94 meters (49.0 feet) effective immediately, though it stressed that the booking system remains the only mechanism guaranteeing a transit date while the Canal's water deficit persists.