Neopanamax

Neopanamax

Construction of another set of larger locks led to the creation of the "Neopanamax" or "New Panamax" ship classification, based on the new locks' dimensions of 427 m (1,401 ft) in length, 55 m (180 ft) in beam, and 18.3 m (60.0 ft) in depth. Naval architects and civil engineers began taking into account these dimensions for container ships. With the new locks, the Panama Canal is able to handle vessels with overall length of 366 m (1,201 ft), 49 m (161 ft) beam (increased by the Canal Authority effective 1 June 2018 to 51.25 m (168.1 ft), to accommodate ships with 20 rows of containers) and 15.2 m (50 ft) draft, and cargo capacity up to 14,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU); previously, it could only handle vessels up to about 5,000 TEU. The Neopanamax standard accommodates ships up to 120,000 DWT.