Following recent news that the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) had discovered an enormous crack in one of the locks implemented during the canal’s expansion, the ACP has announced that repair works will take as little as one month, as engineers begin to resolve issues present with the massive structure, according to IHS Maritime 360.
PTI reported previously that a crack had been found in one of the locks, with initial claims that there could be serious delays as a result of the incident.
However, Javier Carrillo, International Trade Specialist for the Panama Canal Authority, said that this would not prevent the canal from opening in April, 2016.
To read a Technical Paper on the third lock expansion, click here
He said: “I saw the cracks and got scared too. But we're actually glad it happened now, because we're in the testing phase – we're testing each and every component.”
The Panama Canal has so far cost around US$5 billion to complete and will see vessels up to 14,000 TEU traversing through its waters.
The trade lane is anticipated to increase trade flows to the US, helping to facilitate some of the 90% of trade that is carried by sea.
