GUPC, the consortium in charge of the Canal expansion, must return $848 million in advances to the Panama Canal Authority.
From the Panama Canal Authority press release:
December 12th, 2018. Contractor of the Design and Construction Contract for the Third Set of Locks of the Panama Canal Expansion Program, Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A.
In Costa Rica a lawsuit filed against the ICE by Unión Fenosa Generadora La Joya, has been rejected. The case included a $7.9 million claim for alleged overcharges for the suspension of a hydroelectric project in Turrialba.
Nacion.com reports that "...The case dates back to 2002 and relates to a BOT - build, operate and transfer - contract signed between the ICE and the Spanish private generator to produce 50 Megawatts (MW) of energy with a water source in the canton of Turrialba."
The company Oceana Gold has paid the $8 million it owed because of the international arbitration case it lost against the Salvadoran state and has announced that it has no plans to continue mining activities in the country.
With the payment of $8 million plus interest, an end has been brought to the litigation that began years ago between Pacifi Rim, now Oceana Gold, and the Salvadoran state.
The absence of a municipal permit could be the reason behind the temporary suspension of the operations of the Quetzal Container Terminal ordered by the Joint Appeals Chamber of Escuintla.
The union of workers of Empresa Portuaria Quetzal (EPQ) filed a legal petition arguing that the company did not submit a municipal license to operate.The Escuintla Joint Appeals Chamber ordered the suspension of operations and required the EPQ to submit a report on compliance with the resolution within 48 hours.
A new ruling by the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes requires the mining company OceanaGold to pay interest on the $8 million it owes to the Salvadoran State.
From a statement issued by the Comptroller General of the Republic:
The International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) has reported that the mining company Oceana Gold (formerly Pacific Rim) must pay interest to the State of El Salvador on the legal costs owed by the aforementioned transnational.
The Brazilian government claims that the 6,8% increase in the tax on sugar imports from the south american country is in violation of a WTO anti-dumping agreement.
The decision by the new Minister of Economy to raise the tariff on sugar imports from Brazil by 6.82%, ignoring the technical criteria that indicated an absence of dumping, is already having consequences.See: "Sugar War in Costa Rica Restarts".
The South American country has until 22 January 2017 to implement the recommendations and rulings established by the Dispute Settlement Body of the WTO.
The announcement of the WTO comes after Colombia announced the replacement of the controversial mixed tariff by a threshold of $10 / kg for clothing and between $6 and $10 per pair of shoes, and the temporary application of maximum tariffs of 40% and 35%, respectively and above that threshold, a tariff of 15%.
The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes has ruled in favor of El Salvador in the dispute with the mining company OceanaGold, owner of the El Dorado gold mine.
From a press release by OceanaGold Corporation:
(MELBOURNE) OceanaGold Corporation (TSX/ASX/NZX: OGC) (the “Company”) has been advised that the arbitration tribunal constituted by the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) has found in favour of the Government of El Salvador (the “Government”) in its dispute with an OceanaGold indirect subsidiary company, Pac Rim Cayman LLC. ICSID granted an award of US$8 million to the Government of El Salvador to cover its legal fees and costs.
The Supreme Court has temporarily suspended a Miviot resolution approving the zoning change to "high density" in Obarrio, Bella Vista.
Thechange in the zoning code for 42 lots in Obarrio had been authorized by the Ministry of Housing and Land Management (Miviot) in March, and made the change from low to medium density, to residential "high density" and "urban commercial mixed high density".
Maersk Group subsidiary have agreed to indemnify the state $43 million and sign a new concession contract in order to operate the Quetzal Container Terminal.
The agreement suggested by the auditor of the Quetzal Container Terminal (TCQ by its initials in Spanish), Alexander Aizenstatd, must be approved by the Guatemalan Congress.
The terminal was taken over, in early June, after the Public Ministry revealed the existence of indications that the terminal was operating an illegal network for laundering money and other assets.
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The acquisition of TCB by APM Terminals means that any dispute concerning the granting of Puerto Quetzal will involve the largest group in the world in the maritime sector, the Maersk shipping company.
Following the Public Ministry's denouncement of the existence of an illicit money laundering network operating in the Container Terminal at Quetzal , the government of Jimmy Morales is torn between declaring void the concession contract with the current operator, TCB, as recommended by the Attorney General's Office on several occasions, or making other arrangements with the company. The Morales government may have to negotiate with the Danish giant Maersk Group, which bought 100% of the shares of the Spanish TCB in October 2015, according to an article on Elperiodico.com.gt.
Competing with multinationals under DR-CAFTA requires companies to comply with all the necessary processes to protect their brands, processes and products.
The arrival of multinational companies in Central America competing in legal equality with local or regional firms as a result of DR-CAFTA, highlights gaps in legal implementation and best practices for business on issues such as the protection of trademarks and intellectual property.
Employers indicate that taking the dispute to an arbitration panel will cost many millions of dollars and will result in indemnization payments, as it is clear that trade agreements and phytosanitary standards were breached.
The announcement by the Mexican authorities to take Costa Rica to a World Trade Organization (WTO) arbitration panel because of the dispute over avocados, has caused concern among employers who are members of the Chamber of Exporters and Importers of Perishable Goods (Ceipp).
The Panama Canal Authority will be making changes to the composition of consortia in tenders for construction works in order to prevent millions in losses because of claims made by subcontractors.
Conflicts between contracted parties who design and those who carrying out the works, and the lack of clarity in the responsibilities of each of the companies during the Panama Canal expansion motivated the adjustments to be made to future tender specifications.
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