• 3 min de lectura
• 3 min de lectura
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announced a series of temporary modifications to the transit capacity in its locks due to lower-than-projected rainfall in its watershed.
The measure, formalized through a Notice to Shipping, seeks to protect the water sustainability of the interoceanic waterway after the impact of the El Niño phenomenon.
Effective September 3, 2026, the daily transit slots for the Neopanamax locks will be adjusted to nine vessels, while in the Panamax locks, the figure will be set at 25 vessels.
Subsequently, from September 15, the number of transits in the Panamax segment will experience a second cut, being limited to 23 daily transits.
To ensure an equitable allocation process in line with market demand, the ACP will adjust the offer of reservation slots in its daily auctions starting September 3.
The new structure will organize allocations for Neopanamax, Supers, and Regular vessels into four specific industrial groups, in order to accurately reflect the composition of the waterway's commercial traffic.
The first segment will be exclusively reserved for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) carriers. The second category will cover dry bulk, general cargo, and other non-specialized vessels.
The third group will concentrate the operations of container ships, car carriers, and refrigerated vessels. The fourth block will include the offer for chemical tankers, crude oil tankers, and petroleum product carriers.
Under this new scheme, companies that have already secured a prior reservation for the same date (through programs such as LoTSA or Net Zero) will not be able to compete for additional slots, unless there are no other bidders.
However, in the Neopanamax locks, priority will be given to container ships at maximum TEU load, using customer classification as a tie-breaking criterion.
The ACP warned that the reduction in daily transits will increase waiting times for vessels arriving without a confirmed reservation, so it recommended the use of the Transit Reservation System.
Likewise, the ACP recalled that it reserves the right to temporarily suspend this system if necessary, exempting affected vessels from penalties and cancellation surcharges.
In contrast to volume restrictions, the administration granted a margin of relief in navigation depths. Thanks to current Gatun Lake levels, the canal postponed the implementation of the authorized maximum draft of 48 feet (14.63 meters) in Neopanamax locks until September 2, originally scheduled for August 26. In the same vein, the draft restriction to 47.5 feet (14.48 meters) was postponed from September 3 to October 1, 2026.
