Name and Location
Panama Canal expansion project.

Client
The government of Panama, represented by Autoridad del Canal de Panamá (ACP).

Project Description
The project entails the expansion of the Panama Canal by adding a third set of locks, one at each end of the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of the canal.

Each lock facility will feature three consecutive chambers, with lateral water-saving basins, a lateral filling and emptying system, as well as rolling gates.

The Atlantic locks complex will be located east of the existing Gatún locks complex, and the Pacific locks complex will be located south-west of the existing Miraflores locks. The location of both complexes will take up an extensive section of the excavations performed by the US government for the third set of locks project, which started in 1939.

The new locks will each be 427 m long, 55 m wide and 18.3 m deep, with a beam of 49 m and a draught of 15.2 m, suitable for ships of up to 366 m in length.

The existing locks are each 304.8 m long, 55 m wide and 18.3 m deep, with a beam of 32.3 m and a draught of 12.4 m, which can accommodate ships of up to 294.1 m in length.

The excavation of new navigational channels will allow for access between the new locks and the existing channels, as well as the deepening and widening of the existing channels. Widening the existing channels to 218 m will allow for the navigation of post-Panamax vessels through these channels in one direction at a time.

The Gaillard Cut and the Gatún Lake’s navigation channels will be deepened by 1.2 m to a precise level datum (PLD) of 9.2 m, raising the maximum operational level of the Gatún Lake by 0.45 m, from its existing 26.7 m PLD to 27.1 m PLD. This project component will increase the Gatún Lake’s functional water-reserve capacity.

The deepening of the Culebra Cut and Gatún Lake, as well as the raising of their maximum operating level, will improve the canal’s water supply and draft dependability.

These measures are intended to allow for the expanded canal to operate without the construction of new reservoirs.

Value
The project is estimated at more than $5.25-billion.

Duration
Commercial transits are expected to begin in mid-2015.

Latest Developments
The Panama Canal has taken another important step forward towards the completion of its expansion programme, as it begins to fill the lower chamber of its new Atlantic locks. This signals the start of a deliberate and methodical phase of operational tests and quality control that will eventually prepare the canal to accommodate larger maritime vessels and new segments.

During an initial phase of filling, which will take about five days, the canal will gradually raise the water level within the lower chambers of the new locks, pumping an estimated 50 000 m³ of water an hour from the Gatun Lake into the locks. This will allow for the testing of the first gates.

The same procedure will be followed to fill the rest of the Atlantic sections of locks, reaching a water level of 27 m above sea level. Tests and inspections are expected to take about four months.

Among their features, each lock complex includes rolling gates and nine water-saving basins with a filling and emptying side system.

With the addition of the water-saving basins the operation will recycle nearly 60% of the water used in every lock using the world’s most advanced systems, enhancing the canal’s reliability.

As of the end of May, the overall expansion programme was 89.8% complete.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Japan Bank for International Cooperation, European Investment Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, Andean Development Corporation and the International Finance Corporation (loan finance); Grupo Unidos por el Canal joint venture, comprising Jan de Nul, Sacyr Vallehermoso, Impregilo and Constructora Urbana (Cusa) (design and construction of the new third set of locks); Peri (planning and supply of formwork and scaffolding systems); Cusa (excavation of the Pacific access channel Phase 1); Cilsa Panama–Minera María consortium (excavation of the Pacific access channel Phase 2); Constructora Meco (excavation of the Pacific access channel Phase 3); a consortium comprising Constructora ICA, Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas and Constructora Meco (excavation of the Pacific access channel Phase 4); Dredging International (dredging of the Pacific entrance navigational channel, the Gatún Lake north access channel and the Atlantic entrance); ACP (dredging for the deepening and widening of Gatún Lake and deepening of the Culebra Cut); Jan de Nul (dredging of the new Pacific access channel north approach); Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (conduit valves).

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
ACP corporate communications, tel +507 272 7602.