Canal Sa News

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) was informed by its contractor Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC) on Wednesday, June 1 that the Third Set of Locks have officially passed all performance tests and are now functionally completed to allow a safe, efficient and reliable operation of the new locks in accordance with the provisions of the contract. The ACP said it will conduct a detailed review of the submitted report in order to proceed with appropriate action and respond to the contractor, symbolizing a milestone toward the inauguration of the new lane on June 26.

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) said it has received word from Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC), the main contractor for the design and construction of the Third Set of Locks project, that work to reinforce the sills in the new locks will be completed in January 2016. GUPC informed the ACP of the deadline during a meeting Thursday, November 28, to discuss the progress being made on the reinforcements work. As part of its remaining work, GUPC will continue conducting inspections and reinforcements of each individual sill. Afterward, GUPC plans to continue the electromechanical testing on the filling and emptying systems of the new locks. The ACP was also informed by GUPC that they have not yet identified a date for the completion of the new locks project.

The seepage found in the Panama Canal’s third set of locks is said to be the result of an inadequate amount of steel reinforcement, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announced today. ACP said it was informed by the contractor responsible for the design and construction of the locks, Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC), that the localized seepage found in the concrete sill between the lower and middle chamber of the canal’s expanded Pacific Locks was caused by insufficient steel reinforcement in the area under stress from condition testing.

Power management company Eaton has been awarded an additional $5.2-million contract to provide critical installation services for the Panama Canal Expansion Program. Eaton’s contract was awarded by Grupo Unidos por el Canal, SA (GUPC), the contractor responsible for the design and construction of the third set of locks of the expansion program under contract to the Panama Canal Authority. The expansion project is expected to be completed by the end of 2015 and operational in early 2016. Eaton has a decades-long history as a provider of power distribution products and solutions to the Panama Canal, including support for electrical system design and construction in 2011.

Crowley Maritime Corp.’s heavy lift barge 455 4 successfully delivered the first in a series of new gates for the ongoing Panama Canal expansion. Crowley is scheduled to help transport all eight of the gates involved in the Pacific side lock expansion of the Canal – a project that when coupled with the Atlantic side expansion will create a new lane of vessel traffic and double the waterway’s capacity. The 455 4 was contracted by Sarens, a Belgium-based heavy lift company, to transport the gates from Cristóbal, a port on the Atlantic side of the Canal, to Grupo Unidos por el Canal, SA’s (GUPC SA) construction dock, which was built to receive the gates on the canal’s Pacific side.

The four gates arrived Sunday on board the Post-Panamax vessel Xia Zhi Yuan 6 owned by COSCO Ocean Shipping. The shipment began its journey from Trieste, Italy on August 17 before crossing the Atlantic Ocean to reach the entrance of the Panama Canal, where they will be unloaded onto a special temporary dock. Only one shipment is left to receive all 16 gates required for the Third Set of Locks project. These gates will be used in the new locks at the Pacific side of the Canal. Two of the gates are 57.6 m long, 10 m wide and 31.92 m high, and weigh 4,163 tons each.

The new locks contractor Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC) accepted Panama Canal Authority’s (ACP) repeated request and agreed to restart on Thursday, February 20 the construction of the Third Set of Locks project. GUPC is formed by companies Sacyr Vallehermoso, S.A (Spain), Impregilo, S.p.A. (Italy), Jan de Nul Group (Belgium) and Constructora Urbana, S.A. (CUSA) (Panama). As soon as works are resumed, ACP will pay GUPC $36.8 million for December invoices to ensure that GUPC cancels pending payments and obligations to suppliers.

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) reports that despite efforts to agree with Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC) to resume work on the new locks project, positions between the parties remain apart. According to ACP a telephone confernce was held with CEOs of the contracting companies comprising GUPC (Sacyr Vallehermoso, S.A (Spain), Impregilo, S.p.A. (Italy), Jan de Nul Group (Belgium) and Constructora Urbana, S.A. (CUSA) (Panama) to review main points, including delivery times for the gates and how the remainder of the project is to be completed…

Representatives from the multilateral institutions financing the Panama Canal Expansion Program visited today the new locks project construction in the Pacific side as part of their regularly scheduled visits. Experts from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the European Investment Bank (EIB), Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), International Financing Corporation (IFC) and the Andean Development Corporation (CAF) participated in meetings for two days and visited the Expansion Program construction site. ACP executives made a comprehensive presentation of the current status of the project, including details of the work stoppage by Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC), the new locks project contractor.

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) said talks will continue with Zurich American and Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC) (formed by the companies Sacyr Vallehermoso, S.A (Spain), Impregilo, S.p.A. (Italy), Jan de Nul Group (Belgium) and Constructora Urbana, S.A. (CUSA) (Panama)) until Tuesday, February 4. The parties agreed to continue meeting over the weekend to further evaluate the options aimed at reaching an agreement. The ACP said it will inform the public of any changes in the current situation. pancanal.com

Panama Canal, GUPC and Zurich American to Continue Talks on New Locks Project. The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announced that a meeting took place on Tuesday, January 28th between ACP, Zurich American and Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC) (formed by the companies Sacyr Vallehermoso, S.A (Spain), Impregilo, S.p.A. (Italy), Jan de Nul Group (Belgium) and Constructora Urbana, S.A. (CUSA) (Panama)). The parties agreed to continue the meeting today, to further evaluate options to establish alternatives to reach an agreement.

In response to an announcement by Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. "Currently, the production levels are low in the new locks project without any justification. work only when the employer has failed to issue payment to the contractor. However, this is not the case and, therefore, such notice of intent to suspend work lacks merit. In fact, the ACP pays GUPC within the first 15 days after the invoice is presented, significantly in advance of the contractually-stated period of 56 days.

To the best interest of each of the parties involved and abiding by the contract, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) issued a proposal to the contractor of the new locks, Grupo Unidos por El Canal S.A. (GUPC), for the joint contribution of $283 million to the project by the contractor and ACP. This contribution would allow to regularly continuing the works while the claims are resolved under the mechanisms established within the contract. ACP has forward a proposal to advance $100 million to GUPC under the mechanisms included in the contract to allow the contractor to tend to its pending obligations. The contractor must guarantee these funds through a letter of credit.

ACP reaffirms it's commitment to the 'Expansion Program' in a prepared statement, addressing recent turmoil with construction contractor. The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) reaffirms its commitment to the international maritime community and its customers to successfully complete the Expansion Program, thereby fulfilling its objective in offering a new era of opportunities to world maritime commerce. To date, the Expansion Program has an overall completion rate of 72% and the new locks project, which is one component of the Expansion Program, is 65% complete. The project is expected to be open to commercial transits by mid-2015. In recent statements to the press, the contractor of the new locks, Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A.

After analyzing the letter received on December 30, 2013 by the new locks contractor Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A. (GUPC), which was made public on January 1 by GUPC, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) determined that it is not valid and that the arguments raised by the contractor in the note lack legal basis and are not clear. Therefore, it does not give any reasons for the contractor to suspend the work. In a letter, the ACP reminded the contractor that on December 13, 2013…

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) reaffirms its commitment to successfully complete the Expansion Program to fulfill its objective of offering a new era to world maritime trade. “For the Panama Canal it is of utmost importance that the Expansion Program is completed to better serve the international maritime community and its customers,” said Panama Canal Administration Jorge L. Quijano. ACP categorically rejects the pressures by contractor Grupo Unidos del Canal, S.A. (GUPCSA) in recent statements…

In yet another major milestone for the Panama Canal Expansion Program, permanent concrete work for the Atlantic and Pacific new set of locks recently began – marking one of the most important phases of the construction. Last March, Grupo Unidos por el Canal S.A. (GUPCSA), the contractor in charge of this project, started pouring lean concrete at both lock sites to level the surface in preparation for the permanent concrete work. This month, GUPCSA poured structural marine concrete to shape the floor of the upper chamber in Gatun, on the Atlantic side.