The Panama Canal Authority reported that the canal route reached record revenues of $4.986 billion in the last fiscal year, despite a reduction in ship traffic due to drought. In a statement issued this Friday, the entity presented the preliminary financial results for the fiscal year 2024, highlighting the total revenues achieved.
The income of the Panama Canal, whose fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30, comes mainly from tolls, in addition to the sale of electricity and maritime services. Although income grew by 1% compared to the previous year, the rate of increase shows a slowdown compared to past years.
Approximately half of the revenue goes to cover operating and maintenance costs, while the rest is transferred to the Panamanian treasury. This record revenue was achieved despite the decrease in ship traffic and cargo volume due to the drought that affected the waterway in the last year.
The lack of rain led the canal administration to reduce daily ship traffic from 38 to 22, although this situation began to stabilize with the arrival of the rainy season in May.
The increase in revenue is due to the implementation of new tolls and auctions to obtain preferential crossing times on this 80 km route that connects the Pacific with the Caribbean. Among the main users of the route are the United States, China, Japan, South Korea and Chile, countries that use this route to move 5% of global maritime trade.
