Bloomberg News: Dry Panama Risks Driving Large Oil Tankers Away From the Canal

That will make life especially difficult for what are known as tramp ships — that is, vessels that don’t tend to have fixed schedules but instead rely on when cargoes load — Poten & Partners Inc. said in a note on Friday. The Panama Canal is a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and avoiding it means sailing around Africa or the bottom of the Americas instead.

“Large oil tankers will not feature in this trade anymore,” Poten said.