Panama Canal Cuts Neopanamax Draft to 48.5 Feet as Gatun Lake Falls

The Panama Canal Authority reduced the maximum draft for Neopanamax vessels to 48.5 feet effective Aug. 15, 2026 — the third cut of the year after July reductions from 50 to 49.5 feet and then to 49 feet — as El Niño-driven drought continues to lower Gatun Lake levels. Two further cuts, to 48 feet on Aug. 26 and 47.5 feet on Sep. 3, have already been announced. The Authority said water-saving measures mean daily transit numbers will not be reduced for now, a markedly less severe posture than the 2023-24 drought, when transits were capped.