Panama Canal looking for alternate water sources

The Panama Canal administrator    Ricaurte Vásquez, says they continue to seek a long-term solution in relation to the issue of water to guarantee the operation of the interoceanic waterway and clarified that while they have had congestion, they have never suspended operations.

“We continue working to establish a long-term solution and we have talked and we have said here that possibly the long-term solution for the next 50 years ratified by the last study carried out by the body of engineers is the possibility of finding a source of water different from the lakes we already have and that is the source of the Indio River that is under discussion,”  Vásquez said at a press conference.

The administrator pointed out that a decision has to be made about the Indio River and explained that currently while an article of Law 28 that authorized the referendum for the third set of locks is in force, it is prohibited to build any type of reservoir for the operation. 

“This does not mean that the Canal has not studied the possibility of the Indio River and in fact, in order to undertake an operation that did not require an additional reservoir, it considered the possibility of bringing water from Bayano, which is an existing reservoir, however, the management of the Bayano’s operation is a mixed company, so negotiation is required with that company to be able to access water, not electricity generation, we considered that opportunity because we already had the reservoir, it was an alternative, without violating law 28, to be able to execute something to lower the pressure of water needs of the Panama Canal and particularly that of human consumption,” says the administrator. 

Vásquez said that it is not planned to make more significant restrictions “If some type of adjustment has to be made, the adjustment will have to come by reducing the number of transit spaces.”