A ship carrying liquefied petroleum gas has paid a record 5.3 million dollars to cross the Panama Canal more quickly. The canal authority announced this on Thursday, August 27. The canal will reduce the number of daily passages starting next week due to the El Niño weather phenomenon.
To begin with, the canal operates using rainwater stored in the artificial Gatun and Alhajuela lakes. The water level in these lakes has dropped due to the effects of El Niño. As a result, the Panama Canal Authority announced last week that it would reduce traffic from 36 to 34 ships per day starting September 3, and then to 32 from mid-September.
According to Ilya Espino de Marotta, the canal administrator, there have been several high bids recently. She confirmed that this is the highest amount paid to date. According to Bloomberg news agency, the South Korean company SK Gas agreed to pay this sum in an auction to obtain priority passage for its ship, the G. Spirit, on September 1.
Nine out of ten canal transits are scheduled by reservation. The remaining slots, or transits modified due to last-minute issues, are auctioned off. For example, in April, a ship paid up to 4 million dollars to obtain a slot. This was due to the urgency of delivering hydrocarbons after increased demand caused by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Furthermore, the auction price is market-driven. The canal sets a base price, and then the ship that most needs to obtain a passage right drives the bids higher. The canal authority stated that the average auction price between October 2025 and February 2026 was about 55,000 dollars. However, this amount has tripled on average since then.
In conclusion, about 5 percent of world maritime trade passes through this 80-kilometer canal. The main beneficiaries are the United States and China. The canal primarily connects the US East Coast to China, South Korea, and Japan.
Reference
Le Monde, “Canal de Panama: un navire a payé la somme record de 5,3 millions de dollars pour un passage prioritaire, en raison du phénomène El Niño,” published August 28, 2026. https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2026/08/28/canal-de-panama-un-navire-a-paye-la-somme-record-de-5-3-millions-de-dollars-pour-un-passage-prioritaire-en-raison-du-phenomene-el-nino_6758965_3210.html