The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has released a statement to disprove media allegations that there are over 200 vessels waiting to enter the Canal after the altered booking condition due to the prolonged drought.
The Canal informs that the regular reservation offering includes 23 booking slots for the Panamax locks. Condition 2 reduces the allocation to 16 booking slots in cases involving a significant drop in capacity (such as lane closures for repair). Meanwhile, under Condition 3, as currently being implemented, the booking slots are limited to 14 in total (comprising 10 slots for super-sized vessels and 4 slots for regular-sized vessels).
The statement also cleared out that transits through the Neopanamax locks continue to average 10 per day, therefore the measure has had no effect on these.
Under regular circumstances, up to 90 ships are waiting to transit the Canal. To provide perspective, as of today, the Canal notes there are around 120 vessels waiting for transit.
The data is updated daily and can be checked here.
For this month, the average waiting time for unbooked transits is between 9 and 11 days. The statement also highlighted that they are continuously monitoring these figures and implementing measures to improve the flow.
More information regarding waiting times can be checked here.
