cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/23416568
Summary
Donald Trump criticized Panama Canal fees as “ridiculous” and demanded lower costs or the canal’s return to the US.
In a Truth Social post, Trump also expressed concern about potential Chinese influence over the waterway, despite no direct Chinese control of canal operations.
The canal, transferred to Panama in 1999, is vital for global trade, handling 5% of maritime traffic.
Trump’s comments follow record revenues of $5 billion announced by the Panama Canal Authority. Panama has not yet responded to his statements.
They probably can’t afford to double the fees for everyone, their canal would be out of business. But double the fees only for American-flagged vessels might be feasible.
It’s my understanding the canal is already almost out of business because they don’t have enough water. They limit travel through the canal to avoid emptying Lake Gatun.
You could argue they need to raise prices, both to account for the natural resource degradation and to reduce congestion to a sustainable level
As long as the fees as still lower than the cost to go around South America, I’m sure they’ll still have business.
Until global warming makes the northwest passage practical, anyway.
How much global temperature increase would we need for that route to be viable? Have there been any research on this?
You bet there’s been research on the northwest passage by every shipping and oil company with enough money to spend on research. A brand new shortcut around the world is the dream.