In the heat and humidity of the Central American summer, the Panama Canal Authority was quietly filling the new $5.25 billion locks with water in anticipation of the first scheduled ship to make passage in April 2016.
Businesses in and around South Florida’s ports have been talking about the canal’s expansion since it was first proposed in 2006 and the impact of the fully laden post-Panamax ships upon businesses. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has already dredged PortMiami’s harbor to 50 feet, and Port Everglades (my home port) received initial approval this summer for the first steps of its federally funded dredging. Port Everglades expects to double its cargo by 2020, and the Port of Palm Beach plans to expand as well.
