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HONOURING its 93rd birthday, the Panama Canal is celebrating the successful start of its landmark Expansion Programme.
Nearly a year after Panamanians overwhelmingly voted to approve expansion in a national referendum, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has set the project in motion.
So far it has awarded the first expansion-related construction contract to build the first of five dry excavation projects that will create the new Pacific Locks access channel.
This channel will link a new, third set of locks on the Pacific end of the canal with the existing Gaillard Cut, which is the narrowest stretch to accommodate larger vessels.
Recently, the ACP assembled an experienced internal team to manage this historical undertaking, hired legal and financial advisors, and released other preliminary tenders. It has also presented the Canal's Expansion Programme to international financial institutions, as it begins to weigh financing alternatives for the project, a statement distributed by the US Department of Justice on behalf of the Panama Canal Authority said.
"On our anniversary, we celebrate the marvels of a 93-year-old canal that has passed the test of time and has seen the passage of history, yet it's in excellent working condition, even today," said CEO Alberto Aleman Zubieta.
Since August 15, 1914, more than 922,000 vessels have transited the waterway.
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