Between the first quarter of 2020 and the same period of 2021, the total leasable area in Panama City increased by 4.79%.
Commercial real estate consulting firm Newmark Central America reported that the industrial and logistics real estate market inventory in the Panamanian capital totaled 1,420,480 square meters (m2) of total leasable area, a figure that exceeds the estimate of a year ago.
In order to reduce costs and take advantage of the country's geographical location, executives of the clothing manufacturing company confirmed that they will move two plants currently located in the US and Spain to Guatemala.
The announcement of the transfer of the factories' operations was made by Manuel Martos, representative of Nextil Group, in the context of the forum "Strengthening Regional Value Chains for Economic and Social Reactivation", organized by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Government of Guatemala.
BID Invest granted Calox de Costa Rica S.A. a loan that will help the company invest in substantial improvements in its production capacity and seek international certifications to validate the quality of its products.
The project has two main objectives. The first is to acquire the existing plant to make improvements in infrastructure and energy efficiency in order to become certified and expand its production capacity in the medium term.
On June 8, Law 223 was published in Panama's Official Gazette, a legal framework that establishes environmental tax exemptions for the recycling industry; these incentives will take effect as of 2022.
The purpose of this legal framework is to promote sustainable business practices, the reconversion of companies and the development of the recycling industry in the country.
In the coming weeks, a 1,750 square meter industrial plant will be inaugurated, a complex in which 50,000 bamboo poles will be treated and processed per year.
The Bamboo Industrialization Project in Guatemala is located at kilometer 21.5 of the highway to the Pacific, in the municipality of Villa Nueva. The plans of the businessmen executing this investment are to supply the local market and export part of the production to Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras.
During 2020, 32 environmental impact studies were presented in Central American countries to build and expand industrial plants, with Costa Rica accounting for 69% of the estimated investment.
The interactive platform "Construction in Central America", from CentralAmericaData's Business Intelligence Area, provides an updated list of public and private construction projects that have submitted environmental impact studies (EIA) to the respective institutions in each country.
Segex, a logistics company that operates in Costa Rica's Coyol Free Zone, invested $10 million to build new infrastructure and equip its facilities.
The Costa Rican company has invested to double its production capacity in order to offer integrated logistics services to important companies in the life sciences industry within the Coyol Free Zone.
According to the official announcement, the new 5,000m² building features a distribution center with space for 6,000 pallet positions, a product conditioning laboratory, spacious receiving and unloading areas, large cold storage rooms as well as common areas designed to promote the well-being of its employees.
Bomerics, a company engaged in the manufacture of medical devices, announced that it will invest in the expansion of its operations plant located in Zona Franca Zeta, province of Cartago.
The new facilities will have an area of 10,200 m2, which doubles the 4,600 m2 it currently has. According to a press release from the Costa Rican Coalition of Development Initiatives (Cinde), the investment will allow the company to develop a full-service, vertically integrated business model.
In Guatemala, the Embotelladora Los Volcanes, which produces and distributes Coca-Cola brand beverages, is executing expansion works at its industrial plant located in the department of Retalhuleu, a project that required an investment of $60 million and is expected to be completed in April 2021.
The project began in March 2019; however, due to the covid-19 outbreak, work was suspended and it was only in the second half of 2020 that work was reactivated.
The Panamanian government issued a favorable concept for the establishment and operation of five free trade zones in the country, which together project an investment of $22 million.
The free trade zones, which will develop diverse economic activities such as agribusiness, scientific research centers, storage of goods, international trade, fruit processing and agricultural production, among others, will be located in the provinces of Panama, Chiriqui and Herrera, informed the Presidency of Panama.
Kimberly-Clark is investing in the purchase of machinery with new technology and the refurbishment of its toilet paper and napkin production plant, which operates in the municipality of San Juan Opico, El Salvador.
The investment will focus on renovating the 13,164-square-meter operating facility. With this investment, the company expects to increase the production capacity of its Scott and Kleenex lines by 30%.
America Free Zone, located in Heredia, Costa Rica, plans to execute an investment plan in the next few years totaling close to $120 million and contemplates the implementation of electro-lane stations and the construction of new infrastructure.
Executives of the business complex informed that up to now they offer their clients 200 thousand m2 of space for business activities, but the medium-term plans are to add another 60 thousand m2.
In Guatemala, the Miel Verde project, Special Public Economic Zone, was approved. In its first phase of development, it will require an investment of close to $4 million and will be located in the municipality of Río Hondo, department of Zacapa.
The new special zone will have a total area of 23,544 square meters, however, in the first phase only an area of approximately 5,173 square meters will be developed.
In a 30-hectare lot located five kilometers from the Container Terminal in Moin, Costa Rica, construction will begin in the first half of 2021, a logistics complex that will focus on the management of local or imported cargo.
The project, called "Plataforma Logística Caribe" (PLACA), will be placed near Route 32, the road section from Limón to San José.
Beverage Industry Digital Magazine established in 1942, the oldest Spanish trade journal and the only beverage trade magazine serving the Latin American beverage market. It serves soft drink bottlers, brewers, bottled water...
español
6404
