12/06/2015

The lower chamber will receive about 50,000 m3 of water per hour via five pipes 0.90 meters in diameter


In order to begin operational testing Grupo Unidos por el Canal, led by Sacyr, opened five valves to begin filling the lower chamber of the Panama Canal's new locks on the Atlantic side.

The lower chamber will receive about 50,000 m3 of water per hour via five pipes 0.90 meters in diameter. All tests and inspections are scheduled to be completed in approximately four months.

GUPC project manager José Peláez said that five million cubic meters of water will be used to fill the first two chambers (lower and middle) up to a -2.4 level in an operation that will take approximately four days. "After this phase, we will be able to start testing the first two gates and so on", he added.

The same flooding process will be carried out with the rest of the gates in their respective chambers to fill them up to 27 meters, level with Gatún Lake.

Among the project's most outstanding features are the two locks which have eight rolling gates each and nine water-saving basins with a filling and emptying side system.

N.P_ Filling Atlantic side: June 2015
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