Panama Canal New Locks tested Successfully

The Panama Canal has announced that Grupo Unidos por el Canal (GUPC), the consortium responsible for the design and construction of the third set of locks  project, has successfully completed testing of the reinforcements in sill #3 at the new Cocoli Locks in the Pacific.

GUPC technical personnel, the designers, and Panama Canal Authority (ACP) specialists monitored the testing process, which consisted of gradually raising the water behind the lock gate to the level in which the seepage was first detected in sill #3 last August.

Later, the testing was inspected by a team of independent experts, professors and structural engineers from the Technological University of Panama (UTP), all of whom expressed satisfaction with the final results.

Following the completion of this work, GUPC will proceed to test the electromechanical components necessary for the new locks to operate.

Less than 4% remains to complete the overall project, which will be inaugurated later this year.

(For information about operations in Panama contact GAC-Wilford & McKay at [email protected])

Source: Extract from Panama Canal Authority Monthly Operations Summary - February 2016