Panama Canal Dredging to Have “Ripple Effect”

The deepening and widening of the Panama Canal will have a ripple effect on shipping throughout the world, My San Antonio reports.

“When larger ships start routinely crossing the canal in 2015, long-haul container ship routes will change because they will be able to make more all-water deliveries,” said Rodolfo Sabonge, the canal’s vice president for market research and analysis.

He was in San Antonio as a keynote speaker for a conference of the Federation of Freight Forwarders, Logistics Operators and Cargo Agents of Latin America.

Ultimately, the canal’s influence in reducing costs for consumers will expand because of the widening project, Sabonge said.

“With the larger vessels, we are looking at lower costs for importers in San Antonio, like H-E-B,” said Jorge Canavati, Port San Antonio’s business development vice president. “The bottom line is better costs.”

The canal’s deepening and widening will allow the passage of container ships carrying 12,600 typical-sized containers, and perhaps as many as 14,500, — up from the previous limit of 4,800, Sabonge said.

[mappress]

Dredging Today Staff, May 15, 2012; Image: pancanal