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Vessel Draft Restrictions on the Panama Canal by Locks: February 2022–August 2024

Key: TEU = twenty-foot equivalent unit.

Figure

This line graph shows vessel draft restrictions on the Panama Canal by locks. The x-axis represents month and year and ranges from February 2022 through August 2024. The y-axis represents meters and ranges from 0 through 18. Panamax locks generally fall at 12 meters, with a slight dip in July 2023. Neopanamax locks hover around 15 meters from February 2022 through May 2023, when they dip to just above 13 meters. They begin increasing around May 2024, reaching back up to about 15 meters by August 2024.

Dataset Excel:

F3-13 Vessel Draft Restrictions on Panama Canal by Locks.xlsx (26.8 KB)

Notes:

Panamax and Neopanamax refer to the maximum vessel size that each lock can handle. Panamax vessels typically have maximum dimensions of approximately 965 feet (294.13 meters) in length, 106 feet (32.31 meters) in width, and a draft (the submerged depth of the ship) of about 39.5 feet (12 meters). For container ships, these dimensions will allow vessels of about 4,500–5,000 TEU capacity. Ships that exceed these dimensions transit through the Neopanamax locks. Neopanamax vessels have lengths of up to 1,200 feet (366 meters), widths of up to 160 feet (49 meters), and drafts generally within the range of generally between 39.5+ feet (12+ meters) to 50 feet (15.2 meters).

Description:

This graph is from the 2024 Transportation Statistics Annual Report.

Source:

Panama Canal Authority, Advisory to Shipping, 2022, 2023, and 2024, available at https://pancanal.com/en/maritime-services/advisory-to-shipping/ as of August 2024.
 

Previous Editions:
Vessel Draft Restrictions on the Panama Canal by Lock February 2022-July 2023
Publications: