From The Loadstar, July 23:
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) is to reintroduce transit restrictions as it prepares for the annual El Niño weather phenomenon, which this year is predicted to be one of the most severe on record.
Canal administrator Ricaurte Vásquez said yesterday the probability of a severe El Niño had increased significantly, from 25% in April to 81% currently, and as a result, ACP was “ready to implement preventive measures based on lessons learned during the 2023–2024 El Niño event”.
Dr Vásquez warned of “likely capacity restrictions – not only in terms of draught limitations but also through reductions in the number of daily booking slots”.
The last period in which an El Niño-induced drought across Panama was from mid-2023 to mid-2024, and saw canal capacity curtailed by up to 50% at times, with daily transits halved, from the design capacity of 36 a day to 18.
However, Dr Vasquez emphasised that the “timing and scope of any similar restrictions will ultimately depend on market conditions”....
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