Panama votes Sunday on canal expansion

Panama votes Sunday on canal expansion    Panamanians will vote Sunday in a national referendum on a proposal to expand the Panama Canal by adding a third lane of traffic with new sets of locks.
   The expansion, if approved, will cost an estimated $5.25 billion and allow much larger ships to transit the canal.
   Proponents of the canal expansion say it is needed because the canal will reach capacity in terms of the number of ships that can transit it in less than five years.
   In addition, a growing number of containerships are too large to fit through the canal. Today, 10 percent of the world’s container capacity is on ships too large to transit the canal. By 2011 50 percent of container capacity will be on larger-than-Panamax ships.
   The current locks will accommodate ships carrying about 4,500 TEUs, or vessels 965 feet long with a beam of 106 feet drawing 39.5 feet of water.
   The new locks will allow containerships of up to about 12,000 TEUs, or 1,200 feet long with a beam of 160 feet wide drawing 50 feet of water.
   If approved, work on the canal is expected to begin early next year and be completed in 2015.