Adverse court decisions against companies, social and political conflicts and fiscal issues are some of the factors that are impeding the development of productive projects in Central American countries.
One of the latest court decisions affecting companies with investments in the region was that of Minera Petaquilla, in Panama. The contract that this company had signed with the Panamanian State was declared unconstitutional last week.
Gator Partners has obtained a provisional license to build in Bahia Las Minas, Panama, a power plant with a capacity of 400MW, based on ethane.
Gator Partners is planning to build and operate a power plant called "Térmica Energía Corotú" which will operate using ethane gas with a combined cycle plant with a capacity of 400MW.
The project sponsor, Gator Partners LataAm SA is a public limited company established in the Township of Panama City and was registered on November 11, 2014, with the Folio No. 155 585 316. The legal representative is a Panamanian, Oguel Alejandro Suero.
Electricity substations, a municipal stadium, a hydroelectric project, residential projects and dredging of rivers, are among the projects which presented environmental impact studies in February in Guatemala.
The report "Construction Projects in Guatemala - February 2015", prepared by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData.COM, provides a list of major construction projects which in the month of February presented environmental impact assessments (EIA) to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Guatemala (MARN).
Malls, residential projects, sewage works and power plants are part of the list of environmental impact studies presented in February in Panama.
The report "Construction Projects in Panama - February 2015", prepared by the Business Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData.COM, provides a list of major construction projects which in the month of January presented environmental impact studies (EIS) to the National Environmental Authority (ANAM).
VECA Airlines has announced the start of flights from El Salvador to Guatemala and Costa Rica, with capital contributed by Empresas Alba.
$60 million is the amount that Empresas Alba has contributed as seed money to VECA Airlines, and it is expected that this will cover the operation of the company until December this year. It is expected that next year the investment will be lower, as the airline is aiming for financial self-sustainability by 2016.
The Costa Rican company has announced it will be opening five stores in Guayaquil airport and has signed contracts to operate at air terminals in Guatemala City and Montevideo and Punta del Este in Uruguay.
For the expansion of its operations, Grupo Britt has invested about $5 million, which will come from both equity and bank financing. Including these projects, there will be 13 countries where the company operates.
Greater integration between the State and the business sector is essential to exploit the opportunities offered by the region's investment projects.
During the World Business Forum Latin America 2014, held in Guatemala, entrepreneurs from different sectors pointed to the need for increased connectivity and commercial traffic between South America and Central America, in order to take better advantage of investment opportunities in each of the countries, through the use of public-private partnerships.
The event organized by Latin Markets will be held in Panama from 28th to 29th of January 2014.
The event, organized by Latin Markets, will include the participation of 60 experts in the field, who will talk about how companies can participate in the development of dozens of key infrastructure projects in the region.
Participating employers will have access to more than 300 executives and experts in the subject through business meetings with companies involved in the industry.
After an investment of $70 million, Walmart has opened a 52,000 square meter distribution center in Costa Rica.
"The building has an area of 52,000 m² and its surface area is equivalent to 67 football fields according to the company, and is located in the industrial complex in Coyol in Alajuela", reported Nacion.com.
According to Julio Quevedo, vice president of logistics at Walmart, Mexico and Central America, the CEDI was planned taking into account the expected growth in the chain in Costa Rica over the next five years, though he could not reveal the figures as the the company is quoted on the Stock Exchange.
The Guatemala Investment Summit 2013 will present opportunities for Food & Beverages, Construction, Energy, Extractive Industries, Light Manufacturing, Chemicals and Plastics, TICS / Contact Centers, Tourism, Forestry, and Garment and Textiles companies.
On 30th and 31st May in Guatemala more than 150 investors and business leaders from Central America will gather together, forming opportunities for strategic alliances, investment projects and making contacts with senior government officials.
The hotel chain La Quinta has announced an agreement with the Honduran Grupo Santos to open eight hotels in the region, starting with an establishment in Tegucigalpa, to open in 2014.
San Pedro Sula, Comayagua, Choluteca, and Roatan are other Honduran cities where La Quinta plans to have hotels.
The capital of Nicaragua, Panama and Guatemala are also on the list of cities which will have establishments belonging to the U.S. network.
Latin America is one of the most promising renewable energy markets for Enel Green Power, which plans to invest more than 2 billion Euros by 2016 for the development of renewable energy in the region.
Latin America is a rapidly expanding market, where it is expected that energy demand will have an average annual growth of 3.5% by 2020.
To meet this growing demand, "renewables will play an important role and we have about 830 MW of renewable capacity in operation, capable of producing over 3.4 million kilowatt hours of energy with zero emissions," said Enel Green Power (EGP)’s area manager for Iberia and Latin America Maurizio Bezzeccheri in a recent interview.
Panama is a primary destination in the investment plans involving Latin America energy projects for the company Celsia, formerly known as Colinversiones.
Celsia has 800,000 million pesos ($ 450.57 million) available for new investments and about $200 million in assets that could be sold if necessary, said company president, Juan Guillermo Londoño.
The company Celsia (formerly Colinversiones), is examining becoming involved with four power generation projects in countries like Peru, Chile and Panama, among other markets in the region, reported Portafolio.com.
Tourism authorities from the region agreed on actions to increase the number of visitors by 20% in 2012 if compared to 2010.
10 million visitors would contribute $8.5 billion in revenue, compared to $6.8 million in 2010, according to estimates from authorities.
Jorge Samayoa, Guatemalan Tourism Minister and host of the event where regional tourism authorities discussed several issues, explained that they will attempt to position the brand “Central America, so small, so big” (Centroamérica, tan pequeña, tan grande) in the international market.
The agreement will facilitate the provision of consulting services to regional governments to develop infrastructure projects with private participation.
This agreement seeks initiatives in renewable energy and other projects related to climate change, water treatment and solid waste management, health, education and transport.
Proponents argue that public-private partnerships allow the private sector to participate in improving public services while providing investment expertise.