Panama Canal Adds Extra Queue-Jumping Auctions for Stuck Ships
Cargo ships wait in the anchor zone to cross the Panama Canal from the Pacific entrance near Panama City.
Photographer: Walter Hurtado/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The Panama Canal Authority said it will add extra slots allowing ships to pay big premiums to transit the waterway, which has become congested due to an ongoing drought.
The special auctions allow vessels that have been waiting for a long time to pay a one-off fee — at times recently reaching several million dollars — in order to transit the canal. Only vessels that have been waiting for 10 days or more will be eligible to participate, according to an advisory.