Several ports situated on both sides of the Panama Canal are listed in our Top 100 Container Ports ranking. All of these ports, including Almirante, Balboa, Colon and Cristobal, saw a huge increase in their container throughput due to the global economic recovery in 2010. As a whole, Panama saw container throughput soar to over 5.5 million TEU – up 31.8% compared to 2009 when it handled 4.2 million TEU. Container throughput at Balboa reached 2,758,506 TEU – up 27.1%, while Colon (including Manzanillo Container Terminal, Evergreen Terminal and Panama Ports Terminals) handled a total of 2,121,605 TEU in 2010 – up 37.1% compared to 2009. The remainder was handled by both Almirante and Cristobal. The cause of these huge increases were a result of shipping lines like Maersk Line, APL, MOL Cosco and CMA CGM concentrating their trans-shipment operations on either side of the Panama Canal in preparation for the expansion of the Canal in 2014.
Perhaps one of the major decisions this year was made by the world’s second-largest shipping line, Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC), to also strengthen its regional trans-shipment business in the ports of Balboa and Cristobal.
The widening of the Panama Canal is still on schedule and in July the concrete work for the Atlantic and Pacific new set of locks in the expansion programme started, marking one of the most important phases of the project’s construction.
The contractor, Grupo Unidos por el Canal SA (GUPCSA) started pouring lean concrete at both lock sites last March to level the surface in preparation for the permanent concrete work and in July GUPCSA poured structural marine concrete to shape the floor of the upper chamber in Gatun, on the Atlantic side. The concrete was poured into specialised industrial from work that included a significant amount of rebar (steel bars or rods used to reinforce concrete) to ultimately shape the 100 cubic meter blocks that make up the lock floor.
The concrete mix, designed to guarantee a minimum service life of 100 years of operation to the waterway, was transported to the site using agitator trucks lined with insulating material to ensure a maximum temperature of 12 degrees centigrade at the moment of the pouring.
On the Pacific side, concrete pouring activities also began with the construction of the pit for the first of three lock cross-unders or tunnels. Through these cross-unders, trays and pipes will carry communication and electric wires, drinking water pipelines and other components needed to operate the lock complex. Each set of locks will have three cross-unders.
Each of the pits is built by stacking 16 blocks made of structural concrete and rebar. The pits, at a height comparable to that of a 10-storey building, will include a series of steps and an elevator that will enable access to the cross-under. Once completed, the cross-unders will allow maintenance personnel to conduct their tasks in a safe environment. In its entirety, the new set of locks will require 4.8 million cubic meters of concrete.
East Coast Ports
The Canal expansion will have major impacts on port infrastructure on both sides of the US (and in the Gulf), and it remains unsure how this exactly will work out. In our October 2010 issue we reported that both Los Angeles and Long Beach are somewhat worried that that many importers will decide to bypass the ports on vessels coming from Asia and go through the Canal directly to East Coast or Gulf Coast ports instead. Currently, the majority of Asian traffic calls at Port of Los Angeles or Long Beach, where it is largely moved by rail and truck to the Midwest and East coast, providing a better transportation path given the current costs and time required for an all-water route.
Therefore, it is expected that the impact of the widening of the Canal will be mostly felt on the east Coast of the US. It is no wonder that those ports are lining up to sign partnerships with the Panama Canal Authority (ACP). The most recent one was at the end of July 2011 when ACP and the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA), which owns and operates the Port of Savannah, renewed their ties with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU, renewable for five years, was first signed in July 2003 and aims to unify efforts to encourage mutual economic benefits. The partnership also supports promotional efforts of the “All-Water Route,” the route from Asia to the US East Coast via the Panama Canal. Georgia stands to benefit from the waterway’s expansion and according to the GPA’s market studies, the Canal’s new locks are expected to direct three times more ships to the Port of Savannah, currently the country’s fourth largest and fastest-growing port.
But it is not only Savannah that anticipates an increase in traffic, other ports are also working hard to increase their capacity, be it that they are awaiting approval or much needed funds from the Obama Government.
The Port of Miami has Federal permission to deepen the access channel to its port, but needs USD75 million to start the project’s first phase. While the Port of Charleston is looking in to deepening the approach channel from 45 to 50 feet and is in need of USD 400,000 in federal money for a feasibility study by the Army Corps to determine if this would be feasible. But if the outcome of the study would be positive it will be needing millions from the government to execute the complete project. The Port of New York/New Jersey has started on a USD2.3 billion project to deepen its harbour to 50 feet in order to accommodate larger container vessels. Unfortunately, it needs an additional USD1.3 billion from the Government to raise the Bayonne Bridge that fronts the channel to the port. In the Gulf of Mexico, the Port of Mobile is working hard to accommodate larger vessels by creating a larger turning basin and a new container terminal. In total, the USD600 million-project also includes upgrades of cargo handling equipment and neighbouring Port of New Orleans is planning an expansion which will cost an estimated USD250 million. The port will be able to finance USD33 million of that itself but is looking to the Federal Government or private investors for the remainder.