The Panama Canal expansion is scheduled to be completed in 2013. Image: Dsasso | Flickr

The CEO of the Panama Canal Authority, Alberto Aleman Zubieta, has slammed port officials in Canada and the US for not making the most of the Panama Canal expansion.

Zubieta stresses that if East Coast ports continue to delay the upgrade of their respective facilities then Panama itself will not realize the benefits of the canal doubling its capacity.

“What concerns me is how long it takes to do these types of projects and that they are not now being done in the U.S.,” Zubietta told Modern Materials Handling magazine.

The US$5.25 billion expansion of the Panama Canal, responsible for five percent of the world’s yearly trade, is scheduled for completion in 2014. When completed the canal will not only double its current capacity but will allow vessels with a capacity of  12,000 TEU to safely navigate the 102-mile waterway.

East Coast ports, including Savannah, Jacksonville and Charleston, are hoping that the enhancement of the key shipping route will attract valuable business.

However, as its stands only New York and Virginia Port are capable of handling the largest container vessels operating on the world's oceans.

Zubieta added of the importance in enhancing East Coast ports and its influence on the future of the canal’s income.

“You must realize that you are in a globalized economy. If you do not do it, someone else will. If you don't capture those markets, someone else will,” explains Zubieta.

The Savannah deepening project has been highlighted as one of the key areas of focus in Georgia in regards to next year’s budget, with Georgia Governor Nathan Deal recommending the release of $47 million of funds.

“It's good for objective observers to back up what Gov. Deal has said repeatedly. We need action now,” said Brian Robinson, a spokesman for the Georgia Governor.

“The state of Georgia is doing everything it can to move this process forward, including investing tens of millions more in the Savannah Port deepening this year. We are committed to this project, which is vital to all of Georgia and, in fact, the entire Southeast,” he added.

Despite Savannah being the fourth largest container port in the US and the fastest growing of the nation’s major ports it also the shallowest in the country.