PANAMA

PORT OF BALBOA UNIVERSIDAD DEL VALLE

PORT OF BALBOA
The Port of Balboa is situated
at the Pacific entrance of the
Panama Canal. The Panama
Ports Company (PPC)
operates the port, handling
general and bulk cargo as
well as container cargo
transshipments. The
company is a division of
Hutchison Ports Holdings, the
worlds largest independent
port operator.
HISTORY
BALBOA
ANCON
OLD FRENCH
PORT OF LA
BOCA
CHALLENGE
The Port of Balboa was projected to grow and needed to be
transformed into a major hub serving Pacific trade routes. In turn, the
PPC decided to undertake an ambitious expansion program.
LOCATION
Balboa has an ideal location to grow as a hub for cargo, connecting
major liner services from Far East and North America to the west
coast of South America, Central and the Caribbean. This seaport has
been expanding its capacity since its privatization, handling 2.76
million of TEUs during 2010.
PORT FEATURES
2,000 Meters Long for Mooring Boats Draft 40 Feet

1.196 meters of dock with deep water 16 hectares for container storage
areas.

Port of Balboa has a terminal area of 37 hectares; turning basin 600

meters in diameter;
982 meters of quay (springs 1, 2 and 3),
14 meters deep (piers 1 and 2) and 15 meters deep (Pier 3)
respectively, ramp inspection and phyto-animal health areas
certified by the Executive Directorate of the Ministry Agricultural
Development of Panama. Besides the services of Customs,
Immigration and Quarantine
160 TEUs area aimed at high-risk containers; intermodal connection
provided by adjacent Panama Canal Railway Co.
SERVICES
Facilities for handling bulk cargo, solid and liquid.
Areas for vehicle depot.
In the Dock No. 15 has a container guide.
It has shipyards for the construction and repair of ships and facilities
for industrial use.
The Dock No. 17 is used in the docking area for the ferry service.
PORT GROWTH

Growth in the Pacific due to the weekly arrival of the post Panamax vessels Maersk shipping
line, and increased cargo handling APL, MOL and ZIM. Because of this demand for maritime
transport has planned an expansion of its facilities such as the new gantry cranes, valued at
approximately seven million dollars each, are part of the investment of 300 million dollars of
CSF in the fourth phase of expansion Balboa. These cranes, with a lifting height of 36 meters
above the rails, have the capacity to handle up to 19 container rows wide and download
two containers simultaneously.
This expansion includes different phases, where the fourth phase of expansion of Balboa is
advanced by more than 30%, according to Director of Marketing PPC, Rommel Troetsch. The
new equipment will increase the handling capacity of containerized cargo in this sector of
the country, where only operates the port of Balboa.
STATISTIC
Balboa has demonstrated importance in regional trade and
handling capacity to become the leading port in container
movement in Latin America since 2010. According to the ranking of
container throughput per port, Balboa has handled more than
15.6% TEUs in 2011 compared
WHAT IS PPC
Panama Ports Company (PPC) is a subsidiary of Hutchison Port Hold
that operates in Panama through a renewable 25-year concession
granted by the State. It has two ports on both outputs of the
Panama Canal, the Port of Balboa located at the outlet of the
Panama Canal over the Pacific Ocean and Cristobal Port located
at the outlet of the Panama Canal on the Atlantic Ocean, serving
as a distribution center trade routes to the Atlantic and Pacific ports
are equipped to handle containers, general cargo, bulk cargo and
passenger ships.