Boosting Panama’s cruise tourism with new berth

Dredging the navigation canal and terminal area, as well as developing the surrounding land for the terminal was accomplished by a consortium of China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) and Belgium’s Jan de Nul. ShibataFenderTeam Inc., the Group’s US office, successfully handled the project. 18 Ocean Guard Fenders (size 3300 x L 6500 mm) with fixing hardware were supplied to Panama. Ocean Guard Fenders are foam fenders which are an excellent solution for Cruise Terminals. The urethane skin of the fenders is preferred by cruise vessel operators as they do not leave any marking to the bright white hull of cruise vessels. Foam fenders allow for a low hull pressure with proportional increase of energy and reaction. They are extremely robust and unsinkable even if damaged.

The customized solution for the Cruise Terminal in Amador was designed to accommodate the fenders to a broad range of tides. The client needed the fenders very quickly and our US office was able to improve the agreed delivery time, reducing it by two months.

Amador’s new terminal consists of a pier with two berths and a total length of 366 m. It shall accommodate two mega cruise ships simultaneously and handle all their passengers, which can easily be 10,000 at a time.

With the two new berths at Amador Cruise Terminal, Panama City increased its cruise vessel capacity to a total of five of the largest passenger ships.

We wish the port a successful start of its operation and a prosperous first cruise season at the new terminal.