Construction of the waterway would have allowed the passage of ocean-going barges that could be loaded at a new lake port to be built in the Lake of Nicaragua and discharged at upriver ports, like how the United States takes advantage of its extensive inland waterway system.
To make the waterway navigable requires the construction of three locks to bypass the rapids and the dredging of the largest sandbars in the river.
The 2.44 meters (8 ft 0 in) minimum depth after dredging, will allow the passage of shallow-draft barges, with cargo loads of up to 1,500 tons or 75 FEU at full draft of approximately 2 metres.
The barges will be pushed by a towboat along the San Juan river and will be of an ocean-going design, with a protected and reinforced prow and ballasting capability for stability for crossing the open waters of the Caribbean.
The 2.44 meters (8 ft 0 in) navigation depth has been determined to be the most appropriate solution after modelling trade-offs between construction costs, capacity utilisation and scale economies.