Restrictions on the daily number of transits began to be introduced in July in order to save water used to fill the locks.
The Panama Canal Authority announced that the locks' capacity will increase to 27 vessels per day by the end of March, up from 24 currently.
This is written by TTS with reference to the information of the Panama Canal Administration.
Three additional daily slots will increase traffic through the old locks for Panamax-class vessels. The number of transits through Neopanamax locks will remain unchanged at 7. Two of the three added daily slots will be auctioned.
Restrictions on the daily number of transits began to be introduced in July in order to save water, which is used to fill the locks. Initially, the number of slots for vessels passing through the canal was reduced to 32 per day, and by December it was reduced to just 20. Despite the increase, the canal's capacity remains well below normal levels of 37-38 vessels per day.
Prolonged layoffs on the canal's approaches last fall forced operators to divert vessels to alternative routes, and by early 2024 transit demand had fallen even below the canal's reduced capacity.
In January, the average number of transits through the NeoPanamax locks fell to 6.1 with a capacity of 7 vessels per day.