Panama Canal delegation visits Japan

A Panama Canal delegation headed by Administrator Jorge L. Quijano visited Japan to hold discussions with the Japan Shipowners’ Association and the major Japanese shipping lines, as well as end customers such as Japanese car manufacturers and energy sector companies.

Japan is among the top five user nations of the Panama Canal.  Japan’s top three shipping lines: Nippon Yusen Kaisha Line, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Line rank among the top 20 customers of the waterway.

The delegation also had the opportunity to meet with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation to discuss the progress of the Expansion Program, Panama Canal said in a statement. JBIC is one of the five multilateral institutions providing financing for the Expansion.

The Panama Canal Expansion will open new possibilities for the shipments of liquefied natural gas through the waterway, which will open a potential for Japan to import LNG from the U.S. Gulf Coast. The Panama Canal held meetings with stakeholders in this sector such as Astomos Energy Corporation, Tokyo Gas and Japan Coal Development.

As part of the visit and in commemoration of the centennial of the waterway, a photographic exhibition was inaugurated at the Instituto Cervantes in Tokyo detailing the construction, operation and Expansion of the Panama Canal, the statement added.

 

Press Release; Image: ACP