Panamanian Government to Proceed with Farfán Mega-Port Facility
La Critica - The Panamanian government will negotiate for the construction of a new port facility in Farfán. The project will be located on a 253 hectare parcel of land in Farfán, part of the old Howard Air Force Base. The government will negotiate with a consortium comprised of two companies - Cosco Pacific Limited and Ports America Group, for a concession for a new container port in the areas of Palo Seco and Farfán, near the Bridge of the Américas and the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal. The Executive Branch has authorized the Minister of Commerce Carmen Gisela Vergara together with the Panamanian Maritime Authority, to conduct the negotiations in representation of the Panamanian state. They will negotiate a contract with the joint partnership formed by Cosco Pacific Limited and Ports America Group that involves the design, land fill, construction, operation, administration and maintenance of a shipping container terminal in Palo Seco / Farfán. A study conducted by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) established that a port in this zone could become the second largest container port in the Pacific. The lands and facilities in the area are estimated to be worth more than $1 billion dollars. The bidding process to let the contract to construct the terminal facility was suspended for almost a year due to legal action taken by other parties interested in developing the container port facilities.Editor's Comment: The Panama Ports Company (PPC) operated by Hutchinson Wampoa was prohibited from participating in the bidding process to build and operate this port because the Panamanian government did not want them to have a monopoly on the Pacific side container handling operations. The PPC sued and lost in the Supreme Court, opening the way for the government to proceed with this granting this concession. This announcement basically just says they have decided to proceed with the process and now they will continue to work out the details with the company that won the bid. The Farfan port is one of the "mega-projects" under discussion for several years and now it looks like it's actually going to come together. Add this one to the expansion of the Panama Canal, the cleanup of the Bay of Panama, the extension of the Northern Corridor to Colon, as well as many other infrastructure upgrades and improvements. Business could not be better and the money just keeps rolling in. This might be the first time in history that the Panamanian economy does not get crushed when the US slips into a recession, simply because the local economy has enough steam to keep pulling under its own weight.
Gobierno negociará puerto en Farfán
Redacción | Crítica en Línea
El proyecto estará ubicado en un terreno de 253 hectáreas en Farfán, los cuales formaban parte de la antigua base aérea estadounidense de Howard.
El Gobierno negociará con un consorcio integrado por las empresas Cosco Pacific Limited y Ports America Group, la concesión de un nuevo puerto de contenedores en el área de Farfán/Palo Seco, cerca del Puente de las Américas y en la misma entrada del Canal de Panamá, en el Pacífico.
El Órgano Ejecutivo autorizó a la Ministra de Comercio, Carmen Gisela Vergara, en conjunto con la Autoridad Marítima de Panamá, para conducir las negociaciones en representación del Estado panameño.
El contrato que se negociará con el consorcio conjunto de Cosco Pacific Limited y Ports America Group involucra el diseño, relleno, construcción, operación, administración y mantenimiento de una terminal de contenedores en Farfán/Palo Seco.
Un estudio de la Agencia Internacional del Japón para la Cooperación (JICA, por sus siglas en inglés), estableció que un puerto en esta zona podría convertirse en el segundo mayor puerto de contenedores en el Pacífico. El valor estimado de los terrenos e instalaciones en Farfán/Howard es de $1, 000 millones.
La licitación para la construir del citado terminal estuvo suspendido por casi un año, debido a recursos legales interpuestos por los interesados en desarrollar el citado puerto de contenedores.
