Panama Canal to Increase Daily Transit Slots Ahead of Schedule

Glenn Taylor
·4 min read

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) is increasing the number of daily slots available to traverse the waterway, upping the total from 24 to 27 by the end of the month.

Two additional slots for Panamax vessels will be auctioned off for transit dates beginning March 18, and an additional slot will become available for transit dates beginning March 25. The Panamax locks enable passage of smaller ships up to 966 feet long with a 39.5-foot draft.

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This takes the number of Panamax vessels passing through the canal per day from 17 to 20. Larger Neopanamax ships, which have a maximum length of 1,215 feet and a 44-foot draft, will still have seven slots per day.

The move is a reversal from the ACP’s report last month that it would wait until April to make another decision on the daily transit restrictions, and is being made to “accommodate the growing demand for transits.”

“These measures allow the majority of vessels that want to transit the Canal to have a better chance of obtaining a reservation,” the ACP said in the announcement.

A months-long drought during 2023’s May-to-November rainy season forced the canal to begin establishing the restrictions starting last July, when the authority first trimmed the number of daily vessels allowed to pass. Under normal conditions, 34 to 36 vessels per day pass through the Panama Canal.

In January, the Panama Canal increased the number of ships it accepts each day for the first time since establishing the restrictions, upping the total from 22 to the 24 that currently transit the waterway.

The ACP’s decision is based on the present and projected water levels at Gatún Lake, which provides the water to move ships through the Panama Canal’s lock system.

The Panama Canal is in currently in its transitional dry season, which is expected to last through May. As of Wednesday, Gatún Lake’s official water levels are 80.5 feet deep, more than three feet below the average water levels of 83.9 feet in the five years prior.

But this is a significant improvement over late August water levels, when the drought was in full effect. On August 28, the lake was 79.6 feet deep, nearly six feet below the 85.3 feet it averaged that month over the past five years.

According to a February Reuters report, the canal plans to slow increase daily slots if rain arrives in May as expected, with the end goal to return to about 36 vessels per day.

“Panama Canal specialists are closely monitoring the current water situation, and the measures announced…will remain in effect until conditions warrant changes, which will be announced in a timely manner,” the ACP said.

As of Wednesday, there are 40 vessels in queue for transit that have already booked, while another 10 that haven’t booked are waiting in line. The average waiting time for non-booked vessels going northbound is just 1.1 days, while southbound trips are more backlogged at 5.5 days.

The queue slowly declined since the summer, suggesting that the canal’s measures were effective, and has since stayed consistent since the expansion back to 24 transits per day. On Jan. 23, 49 total vessels were in queue to transit the Panama Canal, with 38 already booked and 11 not having made a reservation yet.

The total is fewer than the 57 vessels in line for the canal on Jan. 11 and the 63 vessels lined up on Dec. 18. On Nov. 30, 110 total ships were waiting to wade through, with 51 pre-booked boats in queue and another 59 non-booked ships seeking passage.

As the queue thins out, another important byproduct has arisen—liners are getting through the canal at a much faster pace.

Canal waters time—the average time it takes a vessel to transit the canal, including waiting time for passage—dipped from 44.1 hours in December to 32.1 hours in January, before dropping even further to just 20.9 hours in February.

Even as the canal seems to be progressing, shippers will continue to keep a close watch, especially given that delays are also occurring via the world’s other major shipping gateway, Egypt’s Suez Canal. Ongoing attacks by Yemen-based Houthi rebels in the Red Sea have forced major container shipping companies to avoid the waterway altogether, instead extending their voyage around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.

The concerns at the Panama Canal also could play into the current labor negotiations on the U.S. East and Gulf Coast port negotiations, where a possible strike could potentially exacerbate any delays that ships may already experience in attempting to access those ports.