After several delays in the construction process, the Moin Container Terminal was officially inaugurated in Costa Rica, a port that has already been authorized to start operations of the second berth.
The operations of the maritime terminal in charge of the concessionaire APM Terminals began in October 2018, since at the end of that month the authorities of the National Council of Concessions informed that after the definitive reception of the work, the maritime terminal received the order to start operating.
After the final reception of the work, in Costa Rica the Moin Container Terminal is expected to start receiving the first commercial ships next Friday.
Authorities of the National Council of Concessions reported that yesterday (Monday) made the final reception of the work, so the maritime terminal will receive the order to start operations at the end of this week.
The project must take into consideration the extension to three lanes in each direction of the stretch from Sabana to Ciudad Colón, including bridges, construction of drainage and other works.
The National Concessions Council (CNC) is waiting for the concessionaire Autopistas del Sol to present a proposal with details of the enlargement, after a study concluded that Route 27 is saturated by 70%.
Using the format of a trust the National Concessions Council will carry out twelve minor works on Route 27.
The Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MOPT) explained that"...The 5,500 million colones ($10.2 million) will be allocated to the payment of expropriations of property required to provide access to properties that were interlocked with the construction of the road, the design and construction of the works ordered be paid by judicial instances, and for the design and construction of two fixed weighingstations on Route 27, which will be located near the Atenas toll booth. "
A constitutional court has rejected appeals by port unionists and announced that the construction of the Container Terminal at Moin will begin in early 2015.
From a statement issued by APM Terminals:
San José, Costa Rica, October 9. The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the Costa Rican Government and APM Termináis in an appeal filed by the port workers unión against the 33-year concession contract for the new Moin Container Terminal (TCM) in Limón on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.
APM Terminals will have until October to comply with the requirements and outstanding permits to begin construction of the container port in the Costa Rican Caribbean.
Through a consensus among the three parties (Japdeva, National Concessions Council and APM Terminals) it has been agreed to extend for a period of three months the suspension agreed last April.
The government will have to pay $35 million to the company OAS for breach of contract in the award of the construction of the road from San Ramon to San José.
The payment will be made in March 2014 with funding from the National Concessions Council and the budget allocated to that entity for the coming year, said Roberto Gallardo, Minister of Planning and member of the National Council of Concessions.
In Costa Rica the Brazilian company OAS has six months to find someone to pay more than $500 million for a project that has been opposed by 90% of the population.
According to Edwin Rodriguez, technical secretary of the National Concessions Council (CNC), the Brazilian company OAS is negotiating with international banks for the resources to fund the project.
Costa Rica's government plans to put out to tender, in the second half of 2013, a concession for an additional container terminal, whose feasibility study is being carried out by America's Gateway Development Corporation.
America's Gateway Development Corporation (Amega) is the company that proposed the project to the government of Costa Rica, so it has an advantage in the bidding to award the concession to build and operate a transshipment terminal in Moin on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.
The government of Costa Rica does not have a supervisory body for the execution of the concession agreement on the route San José - Caldera, involving more than $530 million.
From a report by the Comptroller General:
"... As of 4 September 2012, there was no regulatory agency for the concession of the San José – Caldera route, therefore nine years after the contract was endorsed, there is still a lack of appropriate controls for the San José - Caldera project, with the only controlling body for the project being a supervisor, which in addition to supervision, advises the project manager, however there is no body to audit the actions of both the Administration and the concessionaire in connection with the execution of the contract. "
The concessionaire of the route San Jose – Caldera, , Autopistas del Sol, has filed a lawsuit against the state demanding an update of the cost of road construction.
The company is seeking to "rebalance the contract based solely on an update of the amount of the original bid", said Luis Diego Flores, constitutional attorney. The concessionaire maintains that the cost of the works exceeded the figures set out in the original bid for the project.
Despite having faced union and bureaucratic obstacles, the Port of Caldera is an example of the possibility of the public concession system contributing to the economy of a country.
Before being franchised, in August 2006, the Port of Caldera mobilized 17 containers per hour - about 320 tons of goods. In 2010, it is already mobilizing 33 containers per hour - about 670 tons.
The government intends to give priority to a new bridge on the main road linking the capital with the Juan Santamaria Airport, to be built by the current contractor for the expansion of that road.
Edwin Rodriguez, technical secretary of the National Concessions Council (CNC in Spanish), said they are in the process of negotiating with the concessionaire of the 59 km highway, the Brazilian OAS, in order to give priority to the construction of the bridge.
A bill is promoting the transfer of powers of the National Council of Port Concessions, to a Maritime Port Council.
The project, presented by Victor Granados, entitled, "Ports and Maritime Law", proposes the establishment of a Maritime Port Council, which would have as its responsibilities planning issues and sea-port policies in the country. The Maritime Port Council would become the new port authority under the command of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT).
español
7288
