Panama Canal tolls surge as Strait of Hormuz remains closed, reaching up to $4 million per vessel

(SeaPRwire) –   Companies have paid as much as $4 million to transit vessels through the Panama Canal while the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively shut, the Panama Canal Authority reports, a development causing a major realignment in global trade patterns.

Although transit through the canal is typically a fixed cost with a reservation, firms lacking reservations can secure a crossing by paying an extra fee in a slot auction, where openings go to the highest bidder instead of waiting for days offshore from Panama City.

This auction price has surged in recent weeks after Iran and the United States obstructed the critical Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, causing demand for Panama Canal slots to climb dramatically. Vessel traffic through the canal has risen as cargo is diverted and buyers source from alternative nations to bypass the now-hazardous Middle Eastern passage.

“Given all the bombings, missiles, drones … companies are finding it safer and cheaper to use the Panama Canal,” stated Rodrigo Noriega, a lawyer and analyst based in Panama City. “This is all impacting global supply chains.”

Noriega added that Panama’s government is “maximizing its revenue from the Panama Canal.”

The standard fee for a canal crossing varies from $300,000 to $400,000 based on the ship. Previously, businesses paid an extra $250,000 to $300,000 for an earlier transit. Recently, the average premium has increased to approximately $425,000.

Ricaurte Vásquez, the canal administrator, mentioned an unnamed company that paid an additional $4 million after its fuel tanker was forced to alter its destination due to persistent geopolitical strife.

“It was a fuel carrier bound for Europe that was rerouted to Singapore, which needed the delivery due to a fuel shortage,” he explained.

Additional oil firms have paid over $3 million on top of the standard toll to expedite their passage amid rapidly rising oil prices.

Vásquez noted that vessels are not backing up at the canal; instead, the high costs stem from last-minute route changes and increased urgency for ships to move quickly between points following broader trade disruptions.

He stressed that these payments do not reflect a new standard rate but are a temporary surcharge absorbed by the companies.

“They determine how much they are willing to pay,” Vásquez said.

Even as it gains revenue from this increased activity, Panama’s government has also suffered a setback from the geopolitical conflict.

On Wednesday, the nation’s foreign ministry alleged that Iran illegally seized a Panamanian-flagged ship, the MSC Francesca from an Italian company, in the Strait of Hormuz.

Panama, which maintains one of the world’s largest shipping registries, stated the vessel was “forcibly taken” by Iran. It was not immediately known if the ship was still held by Iranian authorities.

“This incident is a grave assault on maritime security and an unnecessary escalation at a moment when the international community is calling for the Strait of Hormuz to stay open to global shipping free from threats or coercion,” the ministry said.

Analyst Noriega warned that the sums companies pay for canal transit could increase further if the conflict persists, especially with oil prices already climbing steeply. The price of Brent crude oil briefly exceeded $107 a barrel this week, a sharp rise from about $66 a barrel a year earlier.

“No one truly anticipated the possible impact (the war) would carry for worldwide trade,” Noriega said.