wednesday, march 03, 2010
The Panama Canal
A joint U.S.-European group has presented the low bid to analyze the options for a vehicular crossing at the Atlantic entrance of the Panama Canal.San Francisco-based URS Corp. and the Danish firm COWI A/S submitted a bid of $895,000 - the lowest of five tendered - to examine the possibilities of a permanent crossing at the historic waterway's Atlantic entrance that will allow uninterrupted traffic on that side of the isthmus.
The crossing is needed since the construction of new locks on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal required for the $5.2 billion Third Lane Expansion project will make vehicular traffic across the isthmus on the existing roadway impossible. read more
thursday, january 21, 2010
The Nicaragua Canal
The Panama Canal has become cemented in the public mind as the trans-oceanic waterway across the Central American isthmus. But the route chosen for the historic canal almost went through nearby Nicaragua.In fact, a stamp depicting a smoking volcano is believed to have been the deciding factor swaying the US Senate to vote for the route through Panama in 1902. The success of that enterprise quelled calls for the northern alternate for almost a century.
Recently, Nicaragua renewed the push for a canal route through it's territory as a plausible alternative to the Panamanian waterway. Officials have redoubled efforts to find financing for the ambitious $18 billion proposal.
My most recent post for my ENR.com blog, A man, a plan, a canal... Nicaragua? looks at the interesting history of this alternate canal route and the recent efforts to renew it.
wednesday, january 20, 2010
The Panama Canal
The construction of new locks on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal required for the $5.2 billion Third Lane Expansion project will make vehicular traffic across the isthmus on the existing roadway impossible.To address the situation, the Panama Canal Authority has begun the process to find a solution - either a bridge or tunnel - that will permit traffic to pass across the waterway. When completed it will be the only permanent vehicular crossing connecting the North and South American land masses on the Atlantic side of the isthmus.
The ACP is currently soliciting bids for a feasibility contract to examine possible alternatives. My story, Panama Canal Authority Seeks New Canal Crossing, is in this week's Engineering News-Record.
wednesday, december 23, 2009
The Panama Canal
Bids for the second-largest contract required as part of the massive $5.2 billion Panama Canal Third Lane Expansion Project have been submitted to the governing authority of the historic waterway.Four groups submitted bids for the work completing a 6.7-kilometer-long access channel on the canal's Pacific side. The $268 million offer by an international consortium comprised of the firms FCC, MECO and ICA was the lowest. The job will be awarded early next year.
The work involves the excavation of 26 million cubic meters of material and the construction of a a 1.7 kilometer-long clay core dam between the access channel and the Miraflores Lake. In addition, 80 hectacres of a former US Army firing range must be cleared of unexploded ordinance.
My story on the bidding, Spanish-Mexican-Costa Rican Team Submits Low Bid for Second Biggest Panama Canal Contract, is at ENR.com.
wednesday, july 15, 2009
Panama Canal Third Lane Expansion
An international construction team led by Spanish contractor Sacyr Vallehermoso SA netted the design-build job to construct a pair of new set of locks for the Panama Canal. The work is the heart of a $5.2 billion effort to expand the historic waterway.The $3.12 billion bid by Grupo Unidos for el Canal was significantly within the Panama Canal Authority's estimated $3.48 billion for the lock-building effort. The technical evaluation of the consortium's proposal was also the highest of the three proposals for the work.
In addition to Sacyr Vallehermoso, the winning consortium Impregilo SpA of Italy, Belgium's Jan De Nul NV, Constructora Urbana SA (CUSA) of Panama and Heerema Fabrication Group of The Netherlands. The design team is made up of MWH from Broomfield, Colo., Tetra Tech of Pasadena, Calif and Holland's IV Group. read more
wednesday, may 20, 2009
Panama Canal Third Lane Expansion
The $5.25 billion Third Lane Expansion of the Panama Canal has made quite a bit of progress in the past 21 months and it's getting ready to kick into an even higher gear.To date, substantial work has been done on the Pacific Access Channel as well as dredge works on the Pacific entrance to the waterway. (In addition to ongoing dredge and construction efforts undertaken by the Panama Canal Authority).
In July, the Panama Canal Authority is slated to award the estimated $3.3 billion design/build contract for the construction of the new locks. Three consortia comprised of more than two dozen international firms are vying for the historic job.
To prepare for that vast undertaking, the canal authority has partnered with Denver, Col.-based CH2M Hill to create an innovative management team that will oversee the effort. read more
thursday, march 05, 2009
The Panama Canal
Three international consortia have submitted bids to undertake the design and construction of the new locks for the Panama Canal. Canal officials estimate the work will absorb more than 60 percent of the $5.2 billion pricetag for the third lane expansion project slated for completion in 2014.The three consortia submitting bids included; Consorcio C.A.N.A.L. led by ACS Servicios, Comunicaciones y Energia, S.L. of Spain; Consortium Bechtel, Taisei, Mitsubishi Corp., led by U.S.-based Bechtel Internacional, Inc. and Grupo Unidos por el Canal, led by Spanish company Sacyr Vallehermoso S.A.
A fourth consortium, Consorcio Atlantico-Pacifico de Panama led by Bouygues Travaux Publics of France, was approved to participate in the lock building process but did not submit a bid.
The gravity-operated, single-lane, three-step locks at the Atlantic and Pacific entrances will boast lock chambers 427 meters long by 55 m wide and 18.3 m deep with sufficient draft for the 366-m-long post-Panamax ships. They will feature rolling gates as well as water-saving basins - neither ever used on a project of this scale. read more
friday, october 10, 2008
The Panama Canal
The Inter-American Development Bank has approved a $400-million loan to help finance the $5.2-billion third-lane expansion of the Panama Canal.The financing is one of the first major portions of $2.3 billion in loans the Panama Canal Authority plans to use to to finance the expansion. The remainder of the project's cost will be covered by cash flow generated by the canal.
The crucial component to the project and the financing schedule is the $3.35-billion design-build contract for the new locks expected to be awarded in the next few months. The ACP estimates that the lock construction will push the annual expenditures for the project in excess of $500 million between 2009 and 2011.
My story on the loan, Panama Canal Snags $400M IDB Financing for Expansion, is at ENR.com.
wednesday, july 09, 2008
The Panama Canal
Although $5.2 billion effort to expand the Panama Canal got officially underway last September, the effort to double the capacity of this historic waterway began long before that.Pretty much from the day following the historic referendum that green-lighted the project, officials with the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) have been hard at work on the effort. And some of the largest portions of the project are looming near on the horizon. Most notably being the $3.35 billion locks portion of the effort that is slated to be awarded in December.
Earlier this year I interviewed Jorge Quijano, the canal authority's director of maritime operations, about the work done and what is in store. That story, As Dirt Flies and Contracts Are Let, Panama Canal Expansion is Moving, can be found in this week's issue of Engineering News-Record.
friday, april 04, 2008
The Panama Canal
Earlier this week the Belgian company, Dredging International, won the $177.5-million contract to widen and deepen the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal.The job is part of the $5.25 billion effort to expand the historic waterway and allow the passage of massive post-Panamax cargo vessels. To allow these massive ships safe access to the canal, extensive improvements to the entrances are required.
The 9-mile-long Pacific entrance will require the removal of more than 9 million cubic meters of material that should take four years to complete. A job to dredge 14 million cubic meters from the Atantic entrance is expected to be announced later this year.
My story on the contract, "Belgian Firms Snags $177M Panama Canal Dredge Contract," is available at ENR.com.
wednesday, december 26, 2007
The Panama Canal
The race to win the $3.35 billion design/build contract for the construction of the massive locks that will be the centerpiece of the ongoing Panama Canal Expansion has finally begun.The job involves the building of new locks on both entrances of the canal large enough to permit the passage of massive post-panamax vessles whose size outstrip the confines of the existing locks.
The four consortia who qualified to participate in the bid process now have until August of next year to come up with a design and bid for the massive project. The final selection of the design and contractor is tentatively set for December 2008.
My story on the bid opening, Authority Starts Bid Process For Lock Work in Panama, is at ENR.com.
monday, december 03, 2007
The Panama Canal
And as the year winds down, the $5.2 billion Panama Canal expansion continues to kick into higher gear. In the past two weeks, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has awarded the second of five dry excavation contracts to create a $400-million Pacific Locks Access Channel and has also garnered the approval of entire project's Environmental Impact Assessment by the Panamanian authorities.Consorcio Cilsa Minera, made up of Mexico's Constructora de Infraestructura Latinoamericana SA (or CILSA) and Panamanian firm Minera Mar�a, presented the low bid of $25.5 million to excavate 7.5 million cubic meters of material in a 2.4 kilometer stretch just north of where the new Pacific locks will be built.
Two weeks prior, the National Environmental Authority of Panama (ANAM) approved the ACP's environmental impact plan for the entire project. The approval followed months of public consultations with various stakeholders and a comprehensive study on how to manage and mitigate impact on the environment. read more
monday, november 19, 2007
The Panama Canal
The heart of the $5.25 billion expansion of the Panama Canal is the construction of the new sets of immense locks at both entrances to the waterway. The Panama Canal Authority plans to combine the locks into one massive $3.35 billion design/build contract and, last week, four consortiums applied to participate in the process.Thirty companies from more than a dozen countries make up the four consortia vying for the locks work - Consorcio C.A.N.A.L. led by ACS Servicios, Comunicaciones y Energía, S.L. of Spain; Consorcio Atlántico-Pacífico de Panamá led by Bouygues Travaux Publics of France; Bechtel, Taisei, Mitsubishi Corp., led by U.S.-based Bechtel Internacional, Inc. and Grupo Unidos por el Canal, led by Spanish company Sacyr Vallehermoso S.A.
The canal authority will now evaluate the four Statements of Qualification submitted by the groups. The finalists will then be permitted to submit proposals for the work itself. Canal officials say they expect to release the request for proposals for the locks project in the next few weeks. The final selection of the design and contractor is tentatively set for December 2008. read more
tuesday, september 11, 2007
The Panama Canal
The massive $5.25 billion effort to widen the Panama Canal took another step forward this week with the opening of the bid process for the dredging of the Pacific access to the waterway.The $180 million effort will involve the widening the 8.9 mile–long navigation channels to at least 218 meters, deepening them to a maximum level of –15.5 meters. The work will require the dredging of approximately 9.1 million cubic meters of material.
My story on the start of the bid process, Panama Canal Expansion RFP Issued for Pacific Side, is on ENR.com this week.
tuesday, september 04, 2007
The Panama Canal
With a massive explosion and a flurry of balloons, the $5.25 billion expansion project to build a third lane for the Panama Canal began work this week.In a ceremony attended by Panamanian President Martin Torrijos was present, along with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who signed the 1977 treaty that gave Panama control of the waterway, the work was kicked off with an underwater explosion at Paradise Hill next to the famous Galliard Cut.
When the project is completed in 2014 - the historic waterway's 100th anniversary - the expansion will more than double the capacity of the canal and will include a new set of locks will allow the passage of newer post-Panamax vessels.
My story on the historic event, Ceremonial Blast Begins Panama Canal Expansion, is online at ENR.com.
tuesday, august 28, 2007
The Panama Canal
This week, the Panama Canal Expansion project picked up considerable momentum as the ACP (Panama Canal Authority) took the first step in the process for constructing the massive locks that will be the centerpiece of the effort.The new locks will cost an estimated $3.35 billion - about 60 percent of the total expansion effort - and when completed in 2014 they will permit the passage of the larger post-Panamax vessels that cannot currently traverse the waterway.
The new single–lane, three–step locks will be located at both the Atlantic and Pacific entrances and will feature chambers 427 meters long, 55 meters wide and 18.3 meters deep. Instead of the miter gates uses by the existing locks, the new locks will use rolling gates.
In addition, the locks will feature a series of water–saving basins, approximately 70 m wide x 5.50 m deep, allowing the water to be re–used rather than flushed out to sea. Although the sheer size of the new lock chambers will require 65 percent more water than the existing locks, they will use 7 percent less water per transit. read more
friday, july 20, 2007
The Panama Canal
Panamanian contractor CUSA won the first contract of the $5.25 billion expansion of the Panama Canal after submitting the low bid of $41.1 million for the removal 7.3 million cubic meters of material near the Pacific entrance of the waterway.CUSA, or Constructora Urbana S.A., was awarded the first of five contracts to dig a 6.7 km link between the existing navigational channel at the entrance to the Gaillard Cut and the new set of Pacific locks that will be constructed later in the expansion process.
The firm has more than 50-years experience with infrastructure work in the country and has worked with the Panama Canal Authority on the recent modernization and upgrade of the Galliard Cut.
My story on the contract and the status of the expansion project, Panamanian Contractor Wins First Canal Excavation Contract, is on ENR.com.
friday, june 01, 2007
The Panama Canal
And another publication has printed my story about the ongoing Panama Canal expansion. New Civil Engineer, a British industry publication, features my story, Passage to Panama in their current edition.The interest in this massive $5.2 billion project has grown rapidly in recent weeks as the Panama Canal Authority has moved forward with the bidding process on various aspects of the job. By the end of the summer, bids on the first excavation contract should be awarded and tenders for the Pacific entrance dredging should be underway.
In addition, the ACP has kicked off the search for a project manager to oversee the expansion. My story on that effort, Panama Canal Authority Looking For Expansion Program Manager, is available on ENR.com.
wednesday, may 16, 2007
The Panama Canal
On monday, the $5.25 billion effort to expand the The Panama Canal gained new steam as the first outside tender for work on the project was released.The Panama Canal Authority officially opened the bidding on the excavation of 7.3 million cubic meters of material near the Pacific entrance of the canal. This work is part of a 6.7 km access channel connecting the new Pacific locks and the canal’s navigation channel.
The tender is the first of five planned dry excavations contracts for the Pacific Locks Access Channel. The entire access channel excavation will require the removal of 46.8 million cubic meters of material at an estimated cost of $400 million.
My story on the tender, ACP Releases First Tender for Panama Canal Excavation, is available at ENR.com.
thursday, april 26, 2007
The Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is one of the greatest engineering feats in history. Its construction cost $400 million, required more than 75,000 workers and took more than a decade to accomplish.After almost 100 years of operation, the historic waterway is having a tough time adapting to the demands of the modern world. Today the canal authority - known as the ACP - operates the waterway at an estimated 90 percent capacity with more than 14,000 ships completing transit each year. The waiting line to transit can be days and, when there are maintenance closures that can stretch to weeks.
Moreover, size is a problem. Gigantic container ships are now built to fit the size of the canal’s prodigious locks exactly. But the boom in international shipping has prompted the construction of a new generation of vessels – post-panamax – that can carry almost three times as much. read more
thursday, march 22, 2007
The Panama Canal
As the $5.2 billion effort to expand the Panama Canal begins to gain headway, the Panama Canal Authority has started giving a peek into the scheduling of this massive project.Earlier this month, the authority - which oversees the management of the canal - held an infoconference to provide details on the seven-year project for companies interested in participating.
Some 600 representatives from 222 firms and 34 countries attended the three-day Panama City conference held on March 8-10 in Panama City, Panama. At the meetings the authority gave a rough timeline for the bids to be let for outside companies to take part in the project - the dredging of the ocean entrances, the dry excavation of the Pacific side lock channel and a single massive contract for both sets of locks.
read more
thursday, march 01, 2007
The Panama Canal
The Panama Canal, one of the greatest engineering feats in the world, is about to get even greater.A $5.25 billion expansion to the 50-mile-long waterway was green-lighted by an election last year and is now getting underway.
The whole project is expected to be completed in 2014, just in time for the canal's 100th anniversary.
The size of the current canal means that latest cargo ships can’t fit into its locks, and those that can squeeze in must sometimes idle offshore for weeks stuck in traffic.
By adding a third lane complete with new locks as well as widening and deepening the existing passage the current 226 million tons of goods is expected to at least double.
My story on the expansion project, The New Panama Canal, is in this month's issue of Wired Magazine.
wednesday, december 20, 2006
The Panama Canal
On Monday, the United States and Panama signed a free trade agreement that could open the doors for domestic companies to participate in the Panama Canal expansion project.The agreement, which must still be approved the the legislatures of each country, includes provisions that will allow greater access for American-made equipment, investment and work.
The Panama Canal Authority says they expect to begin letting bids on the $5.25 billion project in the next few months. Outside firms are expected to be invited to participate in the dredging of the ocean entrances to the waterway. Authority offiicals say the dry excavations required will be divided into smaller jobs allowing Panamanian contractors to compete.
My story on the agreement and the status of the expansion, "U.S. and Panama Sign Trade Agreement," is in this weeks Engineering News-Record.
wednesday, october 25, 2006
The Panama Canal
Last Sunday, voters in Panama overwhelmingly approved a $5.25-billion proposal to widen the Panama Canal.The project will involve adding a third lane of traffic as well as two new sets of locks to the 50-mile-long waterway. The schedule calls for the expansion to be completed in 2014.
The upgrade is necessary due to the increased demand for use of the waterway, which is currently operating at about 94 percent capacity, and because the existing locks are of insufficient size to permit the passage of post-Panamax ships that are up to 55 meters across and 427 meters long.
The Panama Canal currently utilizes three sets of two-lane locks, each of which is 33.53 meters wide by 304.8 meters long. These locks lift vessels 85 feet above sea level to access Gatun Lake.
The project will create a new lane of traffic along the canal through the construction of two new sets of locks. The new lock chambers will be 427 meters, long by 55 meters wide, and 18.3 meters deep. read more