The number of ships authorized to use the Panama Canal will be reduced from September due to the drop in precipitation caused by the El Niño phenomenon, announced the autonomous public body which operates this route linking the Atlantic to the Pacific.
From September 3, the number of daily passages will be reduced from 36 to 34 ships, then to 32 from September 15, according to a press release from the Panama Canal Authority (ACP).
About 5% of global maritime trade passes through this 80-kilometer-long canal, whose main users include the United States and China.
Due to the El Niño phenomenon, “lower-than-expected precipitation in the canal’s watershed” was observed and “additional measures are needed to support the long-term sustainability” of operations, the authority added.
The canal runs on rainwater stored in the artificial lakes of Gatun and Alhajuela, whose levels have fallen due to the “adverse effects of the El Niño phenomenon.” The ACP already implemented other measures several months ago, such as reducing the draft of ships.
In 2023, El Niño forced the management authority to reduce the number of daily transits from 38 to 22, with the lakes at very low levels.
El Niño is a natural phenomenon that returns every two to seven years. Surface waters in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean are warming, leading to months of major changes in global wind, pressure and precipitation patterns.
This year, most models predict an episode of exceptional magnitude, potentially the strongest on record.
Further north in Central America, the government of Honduras placed nearly 80% of its territory on alert on Wednesday, including the capital Tegucigalpa, due to drought worsened by El Niño.
With AFP
