ACP Opens More Booking Slots for Neopanamax Passenger Ships

After completing over 100 successful transits through the expanded locks, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) said that it has started accepting booking requests from Neopanamax passenger vessels for transit dates beginning April 1, 2017.

In its latest advisory to shipping, the authority said reservations are now being made for all passenger vessels interested for transit dates from April 1 through June 26, 2017.

The Panama Canal Authority started accepting reservation requests on August 22.

On August 14, less than two months after the Expanded Canal’s June 26 inauguration, the Neopanamax vessel Hanjin Xiamen became the 100th vessel to transit the new locks.

Featuring 294 meters in length and 40 meters in beam, the Panama-flagged containership made its northbound transit from the Pacific to Atlantic Ocean, destined for New York.

The authority launched the first round of transit reservations for the new waterway for Neopanamax vessels in April, when it offered a maximum of four booking slots per day to these vessels during the first period.