News / Panama Canal draft restrictions hamper waterway's big ship vision

Vessels at anchor on Gatun Lake © Azael49

The continuing low levels of the waters of Gatun Lake in Panama could pose a long-term challenge for the country’s canal authority, as it prepares to unveil its expansion project and usher in a new era of big ships transiting the waterway.

This week the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) made two important announcements – it set 26 June as the date when the country’s president Juan Carlos Verela will officially open the new locks; but also said it will introduce a ...