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MOL Benefactor pays record fee of $841,000 to transit expanded Panama Canal

The 8,900 teu-MOL Benefactor carrying 7,100 teu became on 1 July the first neo-panamax container vessel to transit the Panama Canal after its inauguration 26 June.

Michele Labrut, Americas Correspondent

July 4, 2016

1 Min Read
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The boxship, built in 2016, is 336 m long, 48.25m wide with 12.36m transit draught although her maximum draught a transit draft of 15.5m and paid the record toll of $841,000. MOL Benefactor is part of the NYX service whose partners are OOCL, NYK, APL, MOL, Hapag-Lloyd and HMM.

Her voyage began in Quingdao, calling Ningbo, Shanghai, Pusan, MIT (Panama), New York, Norfolk, Savannah, MIT (Panama) and back to Asia.

Canal tolls increased 1 April and are paid by panamaxes and neo-panamaxes alike, those later paying according to their load and capacity which are expected to double or triple in near future the panamax vessels.

About the Author

Michele Labrut

Americas Correspondent

Michèle Labrut is a long-time Panama resident, a journalist and correspondent, and has continuously covered the maritime sector of Central & Latin America.

Michèle first came to Panama as a press attaché to the French Embassy and then returned to the isthmus as a foreign correspondent in the 1980s.

Author of Seatrade Maritime's annual Panama Maritime Review magazine and of several books, Michèle also wrote for Time magazine, The Miami Herald, NBC News and the Economist Intelligence Unit. She has also collaborated in making several documentaries for the BBC and European and U.S. television networks.

Michèle's profession necessitates a profound knowledge of the country, but her acumen is not from necessity alone, but a genuine passion for Panama.

In 2012 she was awarded the Order of Merit (Knight grade) by the French Government for her services to international journalism and in 2021 the upgrade to Chevalier grade.

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