December 17, 2014 – New goal achieved in Panama for Salini Impregilo for the huge project of the extension of the Panama Canal, with the installation of the first lock gate.

Grupo Unidos por el Canal (GUPC) on Monday (December, 15) began installing the first lock-gate in its final location in the upper lock of the Atlantic, fulfilling the stipulated work schedule.  

The installation began with the transport of the B400 lock-gate from the storage area, to the inside of the concrete cavity where it will finally operate. It did this maneuver with heavy transport trucks capable of moving a lock-gate weighing more than 3,000 tonnes.

This operation is highly complex due to the limited maneuvering space between the concrete wall and the lock-gate. It has been carried out thank to the excellent managerial and technical expertise of GUPC people.

The installation will take about 10 days.

In the next stage of the installation, special brackets will be used to raise the lock-gate and place it on four supports located on the concrete of the camera.

By the second half of next year, all 16 lock-gates are expected to be placed in their respective chambers before proceeding with the flooding of the Canal and starting the operational testing of the new locks.

GUPC is formed by Sacyr of Spain, Salini Impregilo of Italy, Jan De Nul of Belgium and Constructora Urban, SA (CUSA) of Panama. The Group's technical capacity and experience in infrastructure projects in various countries of the world are ensuring that this project will be conducted with the highest standards of quality in the stipulated time.