In International Shipping News 22/04/2015
The 2015 version of the series of conferences and exhibitions at PanamaMaritime, organized every two years by the Panama Chamber of Shipping (CMP) and the Panamanian Maritime Law Association (APADEMAR), with the support of the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) and the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP), exceeded expectations in both national and international participation.
The obvious interest of the industry was the opportunities that will be opened by the expanded Panama Canal.
Under what organizers envisioned, it became clear that Panama is on track to become a regional leader in the logistics supply chain, provided that the government and the private sector coordinate efforts within the framework of the Maritime and National Logistics Strategy. This potential scenario is that all countries are prepared to take advantage of the growing trade movement that will be generated by the expanded Canal.
That apparent interest was not only perceived from speakers at the forum from ports and shipping lines on the global and regional industry, but it was also expressed by the administrator of the Panama Canal Authority, Jorge Quijano, who made a recent tour in Asia, where he met owners and operators of vessels, among other sectors.
Quijano said the operators of 14,000 TEU containerships expressed their interest in using the Panamanian route as soon as the new locks are in operation, but he told them that at first the ACP would transit 8,000 TEU and 10,000 TEU ships with breadths of 49 meters, gradually receiving 14,000 TEU vessels with beams of 52 meters.
In the three-day conference and exhibition, held at the Megapolis Convention Center in Panama City, more than 400 local and international delegates were in attendance.
Contribution to the economy
The President of the Panama Chamber of Shipping, Juan C. Croston, spoke about the economic impact of the sea-port and logistics sectors of Panama, noting that maritime activities represent 11% of gross domestic product (GDP), and added that from logistics activities, the impact is over 33%, according to a study done for the CMP by the consulting firm, Intracorp.
Maritime activities are headed by the Panama Canal, which Croston identified as the backbone of maritime and logistics services, followed in order of their impact on the ports, sales of marine fuel (bunker), shipping agencies and lines, fishing, rail transport, domestic shipping, pipelines, ship repair, the merchant fleet registry, ship suppliers and inspections and certifications.
Logistics activities are concentrated in export processing zones, especially the Colon Free Zone and the Panama Pacific Economic Area (Howard), air transport and telecommunications.
“All these activities will complement and add value to each other and are the logistics platform,” he said.
Among the advantages of Panama, the president of the CMP highlighted the connectivity of the country, described by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) as the best in Latin America, ahead of Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Peru.
“This connectivity enjoyed by Panama provides a huge competitive advantage over other countries,” Croston said.
This advantage, in turn, has an impact on logistics performance of the country. According to the Logistics Performance Index (LPI) conducted by the World Bank, Panama improved 16 positions in 2014 to move from position 61 to 45 among 160 countries.
Croston noted that there is a need for concerted efforts between government and the private logistics industry, while all the above elements, added to its geographical position, gives Panama a distinct advantage “to develop the great potential of becoming a regional logistics hub.” He added: “The refining process between the government and the private sector will be essential to achieve the next stage of logistics development.”
