Malaccamax

Similar terms Panamax, Suezmax and Seawaymax are used for the largest ships capable of fitting through the Panama Canal, the Suez Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway, respectively. Aframax tankers are those with a deadweight tonnage of 80,000 to 120,000.

Problems

Some Chinamax and most Capesize and very large crude carriers cannot pass this strait. Ships such as Suezmax and Neopanamax can pass. Any post-Malaccamax ship would need to use even longer alternate routes because traditional seaways such as the Sunda Strait, between the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra would become too shallow for large ships. Other routes would therefore be required:

• Lombok Strait (250 m (820 ft)), Dewakang Sill (680 m (2,230 ft)), Makassar Strait, then either east past Mindanao to the Philippine Sea or north through Sibutu Passage and Mindoro Strait
• Ombai Strait, Banda Sea, Lifamatola Strait (1,940 m (6,360 ft)) between the Sula Islands and Obi Islands, and Molucca Sea
• around Australia

Artificially excavated new routes might also be a possibility:

• deepening the Strait of Malacca, specifically at its minimum depth in the Singapore Strait,
• the proposed Kra Canal, which however would take much more excavation.