More fears over canal expansion deadline

THE LATEST completion date for the Panama Canal Expansion  project may again be indanger, as The  Canal Authority (ACP) has scheduled a meeting with the consortium GUPC next week to assess the repairs on the Pacific locks.

The meeting will determine whether or not the contractor will be able to meet the April 2016 deadline for the start of operations of the new locks, said ACP Vice President of Engineering Ilya Espino de Marotta.

The new locks on the Pacific side of the waterway have experienced problems with leaks and other structural issues. It plans to repair and strengthen the locks, a process it say will be completed in December. To date, the project is 95 percent complete