Starting from February 2022, the Panama Canal will modify its toll structure for passenger vessels.
On December 15, 2021, following the recommendation from the ACP Board of Directors, the Cabinet Council of the Republic of Panama officially approved modifications to the Canal Tolls structure.
As explained, the modification eliminates the tolls unit by maximum berth capacity, establishing the tolls unit by Panama Canal Universal Measurement System (PC/UMS) tonnage capacity for all passenger vessels.
The current tariffs by PC/UMS implemented since April 1, 2016, will remain unchanged.
According to the waterway, the modifications lead to a simplified structure, using a single tolls unit, adding transparency for the benefit of the canal and its customers.
“Passenger vessels are gradually returning to the waterway, and this modification aims to return to a standardized and simplified toll structure based on PC/UMS capacity,” Ricaurte Vásquez Morales , Panama Canal Administrator, said.
The approved modifications will be implemented on 1 February 2022.
Recently, the canal authority also unveiled a new greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions classification system aimed at strengthening the waterway’s position as a green corridor for global trade.
While speaking at AAPA Latino in Cartagena, Colombia, on 30 November, Administrator Vásquez announced the Panama Canal Green Vessel Classification system, which will include a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Fee.
The fee will support investments to guarantee environmental performance standards and aid in making the canal operations carbon neutral. It will build upon the waterway’s existing incentives for sustainable shipping lines, provided through its Green Connection Environmental Recognition Program.