China and Colombia announce 'alternative Panama Canal'

BBC ^ | BBC

[Oakeshott]

Colombia has announced it is negotiating with China to build an alternative to the Panama Canal.

The proposed transport route is intended to promote the flow of goods between Asia and Latin America.

The plan is to create a "dry canal" where the Pacific port of Buenaventura would be linked by rail, across Colombia, to the Atlantic Coast.

Trade between Colombia and China has increased from $10m in 1980 to more than $5bn last year.

The announcement came from the Colombian president, Juan Manuel Santos, who told the Financial Times that the project was "a real proposal... and it is quite advanced".

China has been increasing its involvement across Latin America to feed a growing need for raw materials and commodities.

[kenavi]

From a quick glance at the map, I would assume that most goods going through the Canal are destined for the U.S., and to Canada to a lesser extent.

It should be more efficient to land-ship imports from one coast to another, than to circumvent the U.S. through the canal. That might be the "high-speed" rail option we are missing.

[TalonDJ]

should be possible to create a design that minimizes the ship-to-train transition.

That is pretty much what they invented those big containers for. Of course they also have 'train ferrys' that you just drive the train onto.

[Freddd]

Is George Soros involved?

[Ben Ficklin]

You got your story wrong on COSCO and the LB Naval Shipyard.

Cosco did want to expand their Port Of LB facilities but had no room to do, so they were going to move into the former Naval facilities.

That lathered up all the conspiracy kooks, so they made a change in plans.

Cosco's neighbor moved into the Naval Ship Yard and Cosco expanded onto the adjoining vacated property.

I can tell that you like conspiracies so let me tell you about one concerning this Columbia dry canal railroad. This railroad is just a small part of Plan Puebla Panama.

Plan Puebla Panama was conceived of by Mexican President Fox in 2000. The whole area from the Mexican State of Puebla down thru Panama would be integrated into a single free trade zone which would include building and integrating transportation infrastructure.

Many dry canals were proposed as part of this but it never went anywhere because no investors stepped up.

When Calderon replaced Fox, he revived Plan Puebla Panama and at that time Uribe put Columbia's northern state into the Plan and that is where this dry canal is located.

Not to be out done, after Fox proposed Plan Puebla Panama, South America also got in the act with IIRSA, which is a plan to build and integrate transportation infrastructure among the SA nations. They have made much more headway than Plan Puebla Panama.

There is mucho info and maps on these two plans to be found on the internet.

[muawiyah]

The Transcontinental Railway worked first time out ~ over a century ago. The same idea with vastly improved equipment such as is commonly available these days has to work.

The costly cranes are the new way we handle port operations. They easily load and unload intermodal freight containers.

[muawiyah]

The Transcontinental Railway worked first time out ~ over a century ago. The same idea with vastly improved equipment such as is commonly available these days has to work.

The costly cranes are the new way we handle port operations. They easily load and unload intermodal freight containers.

[ArrogantBustard]

Paw Paw Tunnel, Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, Maryland, USA

[K-Stater]

Long before this is finished the Panama Canal Expansion Project will be done. The canal will then be able to handle ships up to 1800 feet long and 180 feet wide with a draft of 60 feet. That’s going to kill any advantage the overland route may have.

[Fledermaus]

Aren’t they (whomever they are) expanding the Panama Canal as we speak?

Thought I saw or read where they are doing so.

[texmexis best]

We will probably see how it works.

The canal trip is 8 to ten hours, a very short time. They are apparently designing or building a new third canal that is much wider as only 40% of commercial shipping can now make it through the locks. The new canal will be able to handle much larger ships and put them through at about the same number of hours.

The rail facility spoken of is apparently an attempt to handle the ships that do not fit through the canal but it appears that the new canal may make the rail facility moot.

The current charge for a container ship is 72.00 per standard container, very, very cheap in transportation terms. It is going to be very tough to beat.

[rbmillerjr]

LOL, that’s just east of where I live in Western, Maryland.

We took a field trip there and walked through it in 5th grade...no lights inside, only flashlights for light lol.

[muawiyah]

Most folks have absolutely no idea how inexpensive it is to move goods and commodities in intermodal containers.

These things leverage productivity so well that virtually everyone was totally startled when the Chinese began laying down products next to their own factories at half the price, or less.

The global economy has not yet recovered from that shock. It's like the Pacific Ocean wasn't there anymore.

The Chinese see these Panamian and Columbian projects as something that will make Europe and the Middle East as accessible to them as America ~ and at a real long term cost less than that of going through the Sunda Straits, or around India (a potential enemy state), or through Suez.

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

Ref post #2.

Panama has been developing great ports on both sides (Atl, Pac). It has a good rail system from one end to the other which can be increased in size. The distance between the Pacific and Atlantic is only 50 miles. Guess who wins?

There is also the third locks which will be ready in 2014.

Chavez is snorting coke or something again.

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

“Intersting, but that would be a lot of loading and unloading of freight containers.”

Correct. Hence the third locks system will take care of much of this

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

“And you already got canal from Carter.”

Please explain. I am flummoxed by your statement.

[Calusa]

Thanks. That’s a major homework assignmet.

[Zhang Fei]

Anything that keeps the Panama Canal operators from raising rates is a very good thing.

[dblshot]

Jimmy Carter signed over the Panama Canal to Panama. The lease was up but he didn’t try to renew it. The Panamanians then leased it to a Chinese company.

[Joe 6-pack]

Will MSNBC send Chris Matthews to Egypt to cover this story?

[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic is from February.