Maersk to Dump Panama Canal
Anytime the topic of large Post-Panamax ships comes up, Maersk is the name associated
with very large container ships. Maersk is an industry leader with revenues of
$56,013,338,480.00 and profits of $3,140,546,942.00 there is no doubt that they know
what they are doing. Another big topic in container shipping is the Panama Canal, which
connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. This canal was built in 1914 and it changed the
way the world shipped goods. Currently the Canal has a capacity of moving 42 vessels a
day. But ships are getting larger. The Panama Canal is currently undergoing a major
overhaul with a cost of about 5.25 billion; this cost is resulting in higher tolls for those
who cross it.
On March 18th 2013 Soren Skou CEO of Maersk announced that as of April 7th Maersk
will no longer use the Panama Canal when moving containers from China to the United
States East Coast. Instead Maersk will go through the Suez Canal. Although this will result
in 4-5% increase in travel times the cost savings from not having to pay the new tolls is
worth the tradeoff. Maersk will able to use fewer ships, utilizing their larger 9000 TEU
vessels. “The Economics are much, much better via the Suez Canal” says Skou. Fees to
pass through the Canal have tripled in the past five years, and with companies such as
Maersk cutting costs where they can, this action cannot bode well for the Panama Canal.
Because Maersk holds such a large stake in international shipping, other companies pay
