PANAMA
CANAL INFORMATION
Panama
Canal Expansion
The Third Set of Locks Project is a megaproject that will expand
the Panama Canal more so than any previous expansion since the
Canal's construction. The Panama Canal Authority proposed the
project after years of study. Panamanian President Martín
Torrijos presented the plan on April 24, 2006 and Panamanian citizens
approved it in a national referendum by 76.8% of votes on October
22, 2006. The project will double the canal's capacity and allow
more traffic.
The project will create a new lane of traffic along the Canal
by constructing a new set of locks. Details of the project include
the following integrated components:
- Construction of two lock complexes - one on the Atlantic side
and another on the Pacific side - each with three chambers, which
include three water-saving basins;
- Excavation of new access channels to the new locks and the widening
of existing navigational channels; and,
- Deepening of the navigation channels and the elevation of Gatun
Lake's maximum operating level.[1]
As stipulated by the Panamanian Constitution, any project to expand
the Canal had to be approved by the Cabinet, the National Assembly
and by a referendum[2]. On Friday July 14, the National Assembly
unanimously approved the proposal. In addition, the Assembly passed
a law mandating a national referendum on the proposal. The referendum
was held on October 22, 2006, the first Sunday more than 90 days
after National Assembly approval.[3]
Background.
Since the 1930s, all of the Canal's widening studies have determined
that the most effective and efficient alternative to enhance Canal
capacity is the construction of a third set of locks, with bigger
dimensions than those of the locks built in 1914. Thus, in 1939,
the United States initiated the construction of locks designed
to allow the transit of commercial and war ships, whose dimensions
exceeded the size of the existing locks. In 1942, after advancing
the excavations significantly, the Americans suspended the third
set of locks project due to the outbreak of World War II. In the
1980s, the tripartite commission formed by Panama, Japan, and
the United States took up the issue again, and like the Americans
in 1939, determined that a third set of locks with larger lock
chambers was the most appropriate alternative for increasing Canal
capacity. Today, the studies developed by the Panama Canal Authority
(ACP) as part of its Master Plan, with a horizon to the year 2025,
confirm that a third set of locks, larger than those existing
now, is the most suitable, profitable and environmentally responsible
way to increase Canal capacity and allow the Panamanian maritime
route to continue to grow.[1]
Throughout its history, the Canal has continually transformed
its structure and adjusted to trade requirements and international
maritime transport technologies. In this manner, the Canal has
managed to increase its competitiveness in a sustainable manner.
President Torrijos on his speech on April 24, 2006, announcing
the project, said that "…to say it in a graphic manner,
[the Canal] is like our 'petroleum'. Just like the petroleum that
hasn't been extracted is worthless, and that in order to extract
it you have to invest in infrastructure; the Canal requires to
expand its capacity to absorb the growing demand of cargo, and
generate more wealth for Panamanians"
