Weekly Report - 30 May 2019 (WR-19-21)

PANAMA | Q-Flex barge. On 15 May the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announced that three years after the inauguration of the expanded Panama Canal, the waterway has welcomed its first Q-Flex barge, the second-largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) barge in the world. Measuring 315m in length and 50m in width with a total capacity for 210,000 cubic metres of LNG, the Al Safliya barge belongs to Qatari LNG company Qatargas. ACP administrator Jorge Quijano praised the event stating: “Today’s transit reaffirms the expanded canal’s capacity to transform global trade and offer clients the benefits of economies of scale”. As of June 2018, the Canal’s width was expanded from 49m to 51.25m.