The Panama Canal's transit trends have shown a significant decline overall, with a 42% year-on-year decrease in December. However, container shipping is bucking this trend, experiencing a rise in transits as other vessel types divert from the waterway.
According to Drewry Shipping Consultants' latest report, while overall transits fell by 25% in December 2023 compared to October, container vessels increased transits by 5% during the same period. This suggests a shift where container ships are taking a larger share of the transit volume.
Simon Heaney, a consultant at Drewry, anticipates this trend to continue, with container ships potentially maintaining or slightly increasing their average daily transits.
The Panama Canal Authority initially planned to reduce transits in January and February, but this decision was reversed following heavy rains. Although the current daily transit numbers offer some respite to carriers, they still remain below the levels averaged in 2022.
Dry bulk and LPG sectors have seen the largest decreases in transits, allowing container ships to increase their daily transits. However, draught restrictions in the locks persist, affecting the actual capacity of containerships.
The neo-panamax locks have maximum draughts reduced from pre-drought conditions, impacting the payload capacity of larger vessels. Drewry estimates that for the biggest containerships, this reduction could lead to a significant loss in payload capacity.
Despite these challenges, some container services are utilizing the Panama Canal, although the actual number of containers carried may still be below optimum levels due to draught limitations.
Source: container-news.com