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Fiscal year budget set for maintenance of structures and equipment
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) will invest approximately US$238 million in the maintenance of structures and equipment during its fiscal year 2014.
“The key to the Panama Canal's operational excellence is a combination of its committed workforce and constant maintenance,” explains ACP executive vice president for operations, Esteban Saenz.
“Each year we dedicate significant resources to this aspect of the Canal.”
Since 2000, as much as $2 billion has been used by the ACP to both modernise and maintain its infrastructure.
In a statement, the ACP said that funds for FY 2014 (October 1st 2013 – September 30th 2014) will be used for areas of maintenance that include, among others, the navigation channel through dredging operations; the control of erosion and landslides; floating equipment such as tugboat, dredges, cranes and launches; the locks and their components; and the dams, landfills, power plants, buildings and facilities.
Last week, the ACP also began the countdown for the centennial celebration as it commemorates its 99th anniversary. The countdown’s events will highlight the waterway's contribution during the past 100 years and the efforts underway to face the challenges of the upcoming decades.
The countdown began on Thursday with the presentation of the Panama Canal Centennial logo on the control house balcony at the Miraflores Locks in a ceremony attended by members of the ACP Board of Directors and Panama Canal executives.
