Exactly, they basically harness the natural water cycle (rain to watersheds to waterways to ocean).
The one exception is with these new locks, I bet they pump a bunch of the water back now instead of releasing it, that's how I expect they get the 60%.
Nope, it's not pumped. It's a clever system where there are several storage basins at different levels.[1]
In the 1960s and 1970s, there was a nuclear reactor mounted on a ship to provide power for the Panama Canal. This reduced water loss via the hydroelectric plant at Gatun Dam, leaving more water for the locks.[2]
Perhaps the solution is as simple as invest in more electric generating capacity in Panama. At 8 degrees off the equator, solar is plentiful. One could use lake Gatun for pumped hydro storage as well.
Another commenter noted that they did this in the 60s and 70s, apparently there was a floating nuclear reactor there so they didn't need so much hydro power, keeping the reservoir more full
Apparently it’s 6 MW, which ain’t nothing, but isn’t a tremendous amount either. I don’t know what a typical battery storage facility can put out instantaneously - I would think more, perhaps substantially more. Though the lake certainly would have the capacity advantage!
But they therefore depend on rain to work; thanks to climate change and changing weather patterns, that's no longer as predictable as it once was.
I mean when it comes to the Panama canal, pumping water upstream is an option, but as another commenter mentioned, it's a lot of water and will therefore cost a lot of energy to do.
The one exception is with these new locks, I bet they pump a bunch of the water back now instead of releasing it, that's how I expect they get the 60%.