Seaspan Benefactor Bids Nearly $4 Million for Panama Canal Slot as Waits Stretch to 10 Days
Updated
Updated · The Maritime Executive · Aug 13
Seaspan Benefactor Bids Nearly $4 Million for Panama Canal Slot as Waits Stretch to 10 Days
3 articles · Updated · The Maritime Executive · Aug 13
Summary
$3.78 million to nearly $4 million was bid this week for Seaspan Benefactor to secure a Panama Canal transit slot, the second reported record-level auction this year and the first such spike since April.
Average Neopanamax auction prices have climbed to $2.5 million—more than 16 times year-earlier levels—as Asian demand for U.S. energy exports, Hormuz closure and Red Sea disruption push more ships toward the canal.
78 booked vessels were waiting for transit on Aug. 12, alongside 32 non-booked ships, with non-booked delays nearing 8 days northbound and 10 days southbound.
Late-August and September draft cuts of 0.5 foot each are adding urgency as Gatun Lake slips to 84.3 feet and the canal authority tries to hold traffic near 35 daily transits despite El Niño-driven water stress.
If restrictions tighten further, operators may have to divert, lighten loads or repeat 2023 drought workarounds, when some large containerships offloaded cargo for rail transfer across the isthmus.