CANAL CUSTOMERS
Game-changer for world trade
says Panama Canal Authority (ACP) administrator Alberto Aleman Zubieta. Nobody in the maritime industry questions this assessment since the new phase of operations will double the waterway capacity, allowing the passage of post-Panamax vessels, which are now unable to transit because of their size. ‘It will definitely secure the importance of transpacific trade,’ says an international port operator. ‘This [expanded Canal] could open new options for transhipment of Asian goods to Latin American markets, among others. The Canal is a crossing point that offers opportunities for transhipment to the Caribbean, US East coast, South America East coast and West coast,’ he notes. East coast and Gulf ports see the expansion of the Panama Canal as an opportunity to increase cargo volumes and gather a greater share of the transpacific trade, which was the dominant growth factor in containerised transportation. ‘The expansion will affect both ends, origin and destination, because the economies of scale of using larger ships will benefit the whole supply chain,’ explains ACP vp for research and market analysis Rodolfo Sabonge. ‘Liner services most likely will decrease through the Canal as the larger vessels will be able to carry more than twice containers onboard the existing Panamax vessels [that transit at the moment].’ The Panama Canal expansion will bring novelties and benefits to some Asian countries such as Japan and China, which ‘will most likely see some
W PANAMA MARITIME REVIEW 2011/12
hen completed in 2014, the $5.25bn Panama Canal expansion will be ‘a game- changer for world trade,’
segments, like bulk, benefiting from it,’ he says. ‘And if Shale gas develops in the US we will most likely see LNG vessels transiting to Asia through the canal.’ The expansion will also open new routes to and particularly from Asia- South America East coast, mostly Brazil where minerals and other exports shipped on post-Panamax vessels, cannot transit the waterway and have to go through the Cape of Good Hope and the Suez Canal. When the expansion works are concluded, the navigational channels will allow transit of what are presently described as post-Panamax containerships; Suezmax liquid-bulk tankers; Capesize drybulk carriers;
‘Liner services will most likely decrease through the Canal as the larger vessels will be able to carry more than twice that of the existing Panamax vessels that transit at the moment.’ Rodolfo Sabonge, ACP
larger sizes of LNG carriers; passenger ships and other vessel types, within the established locks and channels dimensional limits. The third set of locks will double the capacity of the waterway currently capped at 300m- 320m tonnes PC/UMS to around 600m
tonnes and will also reduce water consumption, improve safety efficiency and profitability growth.
Ports in the US are shifting towards building infrastructure and deepening harbours to accommodate the new generation of larger vessels. Major shippers are re-examining their logistics and facilities to take advantage of new supply- chain strategies. However, ‘Asia is likely to continue to lead the trend of producing more exports and receiving more imports generated, by commodities it requires, says an Asian shipping line operator. One sector in which new routes are definitely predicted is LNG transport. LNG vessels do not currently transit the Canal. New routes that may be opened by the expanded Canal include West Coast South America (WCSA)-Caribbean, WCSA-US Gulf, WCSA-US East Coast, and US Gulf- Asia. The ACP is optimistic about the potential of the expanded Canal to boost new shipping activity. ‘We are looking at all segments,’ he said. ‘We know there will not be an immediate surge of cargo, but liner companies will look for economies of scale,’ adds Sabonge.
The routes between the United States and Asia continue to be the most important for the Canal, with the US East Coast-Asia seeing the most cargo transported: 52.75m long tonnes during Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 (October 2009-September 2010), followed by Asia-US East Coast with 25.34m long tonnes; and South America West Coast to Europe with 11.37m long tonnes. The South America West Coast-US East Coast accounted for 10.14m long tonnes. The US East Coast to South America West Coast saw 14.83m long tonnes during the same period. As for the first 10 months of FY 2011 (October 2010-July 2011), the traditional routes remain in the same order.
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