The Panama Canal has maintained its full 50-foot draft through this year’s dry season, avoiding the shipping disruption seen during previous years. Image Credit: ACP

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has confirmed it maintained its full 50-foot draft throughout this year’s dry season, avoiding the severe shipping disruptions seen in late 2023 and early 2024 when water levels in the canal dropped sharply.

We are pleased to report that the Panama Canal is operating at full water capacity,” Dr. Ricaurte Vásquez Morales, administrator of ACP, said during the canal’s Q3 market call on Wednesday.

“We have remained at 50 feet of draft throughout the dry season, and we will continue to have a relatively wet winter, or rainy season, for the remainder of the year in preparation for the next dry season in early 2026.”

A severe drought in 2023 had forced the ACP to reduce daily transit limits and lower allowable draft levels, prompting some shipowners to reroute vessels and resulting in lower bunker demand in the region.

The dry season in Panama typically runs from mid-December to April, followed by the rainy season, which begins in May.