More than 200 cargo ships lay in wait to pass the Panama Canal. Several have been in the queue for nearly 20 days|David Stanley|CC BY 2.0
Decreasing water levels fueled by the extreme drought in Panama made the Panama Canal cut daily transits last month from 36 to 32 ships.
Why?
The Panama Canal loses more than 50 million gallons to the sea every time a ship passes through. With rivers drying up and the lack of rainfall, the Canal has no option but to reduce the number of transiting vessels.
As a result
More than 200 cargo ships lay in wait to pass. Several have been in the queue for nearly 20 days and some even had to pay a hefty toll fee of, “$900,000 on top of $400,000 normal toll fee for each ship to cross.”
While most of the ships waiting had made last-minute reservations, the waiting time of nearly three weeks is “unprecedented at this time of the year,” says Oystein Kalleklev, chief executive at Oslo-based Avance Gas—which operates around 17 vessels and ships butane and propane from the U.S.
Holiday season shopping prices may rise
If the trend continues, the cargo shipping costs, which are already high as several limitations and delays have increased cargo costs, may get passed on to the end consumer during the gifting season.