The Panama Canal Authority is intensifying its efforts to prepare for extreme weather events caused by El Niño, developing a plan that avoids limiting the type of restrictions on ships that hindered the navigation by the waterway three years ago.
“We are managing this El Niño phenomenon from a different perspective,” declared the channel administrator, Ricaurte Vasquez Moralesin an interview in Washington.
The authority that oversees the Central American waterway is reviewing lessons learned from the drought that hit Panama in 2023-24 to develop an action plan for a longer dry season that could begin in November, it said. Morales. The previous El Niño phenomenon dried up the freshwater lakes that supply the Panama Canal, forcing the agency to impose daily restrictions on maritime traffic, causing congestion and a diversion of trade routes.
Planners, who typically evaluate draft restrictions in December, are already reviewing rules limiting cargo weight to prepare for the upcoming dry season. The draft of a ship indicates the depth to which it can submerge. The abundant rains They have allowed drafts of up to 15 meters. Most ships that transit the canal’s largest locks, known as neo-Panamax, have an average draft of between 14 and 15 meters.
Morales He indicated that moderate measures, such as restricting the ship’s draft by one foot, could be implemented by the end of June.
The Panama Canal has experienced extreme fluctuations in recent months, as the region emerged from the wettest dry season in 70 years of recorded history. The looming weather event, which could become what is being called a “super El Niño,” is just the latest test for planning canal operations, but assessing its intensity and impacts remains a challenge.
“It is very difficult to determine the severity,” he said. Morales.
