Panama Canal Eases Booking Rules as Water Levels Fall
The Panama Canal is changing its booking system to give shipping companies more flexibility as water conditions put pressure on available transit capacity, Splash 247 reports. The temporary changes will apply to Neopanamax vessels and are designed to make better use of the canal’s limited capacity.
For booking dates starting September 13, Neopanamax customers will be able to make more than one reservation for the same date. They will also be able to book slots on two or more consecutive dates. The canal will offer 63 Neopanamax reservation slots each week, including slots under its Long-Term Slot Allocation and NetZero programmes.
The new system also sets minimum slot allocations for different shipping sectors. Full containerships will receive at least five slots per booking date, while LPG and LNG carriers will each get at least three. Vehicle carriers, bulkers and other vessel types will have a minimum of three slots per week. If some sectors do not use their full allocation, the canal can move the unused capacity to other sectors.
At the same time, Panama is taking steps to deal with lower water availability. The canal has reduced the number of available daily transit slots, while changes to the maximum draft for Neopanamax vessels are also being made as conditions in the canal watershed and Gatun Lake remain under pressure.
