The average number of vessels that passed through the Panama Canal in December increased to 34.2 per day, according to a notice from its authority seen on Monday, but the waterway did
The average number of vessels that passed through the Panama Canal in December increased to 34.2 per day, according to a notice from its authority seen on Monday, but the waterway did not fill all the slots on offer, a sign that some ships continue taking alternative routes.
The canal, the world's second busiest and the only interoceanic way that operates with freshwater, between August and September lifted passage restrictions following a severe drought that forced a limit to daily transits and vessel drafts.
The Panama Canal Authority had been expecting a return to the full allotment of 36 transits per day, especially during peak periods, such as the last quarter of the year. But the open slots show many shippers have kept to their alternative routes.
In November, an average of 33.3 vessels transited through the waterway per day, while the average for October was 31.4 ships per day.
The canal's authority did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
Some vessels, including bulk carriers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers, have continued using alternative routes when the cost of passing through Panama matches the extra fuel they must use to travel around the capes of Horn or
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