Panama Canal to cut U.S.-Asia gas shipping costs

The widened Panama Canal will cut costs to ship U.S. cooking and heating gases to Asia by shortening voyages, according to Joachim Grieg & Co.

The canal expansion scheduled to finish in 2015 will shorten U.S.-to-Asia voyages for very large gas carriers to 25 days from 42 days going around Africa, said Steve Engelen, Oslo-based head of research at the shipbroking company.

The wider canal will require fewer ships for shorter voyages, eliminating the premium for tankers loading in the U.S. even as it stokes trade, Engelen said.

Source: Bloomberg