El único Panamá - Week 46

Welcome to our weekly series about the uniqueness of Panama!

Panama Canal continues to set new records.

The Panama Canal reaches new milestones in 2018. In May, the passenger ship, Norwegian Bliss, was the largest to ever transit the waterway. In October, the 2018 fiscal year closed with a record tonnage of 442.1 million Panama Canal tons (PC/UMS), which represents a 9.5 percent increase from the previous year. There was also a successful transit of four liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships in a single day through the Neopanamax Locks, according to www.pancanal.com

The Panama Canal opened in 1914 and the expansion in 2016, in order to accommodate New Panamax vessels. It is one of the most crucial maritime gateways in the western region. The 82 Km (51 mile) long waterway connects the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans assisting vessels transiting between the east and west to shorten their trip. The journey through the Panama Canal saves around 8000 miles and 14 days, depending on speed and distance, In 2017, the Panama Canal observed the arrival of a total of 13,548 vessels and received 403.8 million tons of cargo.

In 2018 the main users of the canal were the United States, China, Mexico, Chile and Japan. The United States represents 62.8 % of origin or destination of the cargo transiting the canal.

Did you know SHORTER DISTANCE = LESS EMISSIONS?The Expanded Canal will reduce an estimated 160 million tons of CO2 emissions in the next 10 years thanks to the shorter traveling distance and larger cargo carrying capacity!