Grupo Unidos por el Canal (GUPC), the consortium of international construction companies, and the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) have signed an agreement to facilitate the funding and continued construction of the Third Set of Locks for the Panama Canal Expansion for the benefit of the national economy and global trade.
The agreement supports a cofinancing concept that the Consortium has been pursuing to ensure the cash flow to the project completion in the face of circumstances encountered during the project.
The principal terms of the agreement generally follow the conceptual agreement reached two weeks ago, following exceptional efforts by the Consortium to continue work on the project despite difficult conditions.
The agreement, within the terms of the contract and applicable law, provides among other things as follows:
The claims for cost overruns will continue its proceedings on arbitration agencies provided in the contract. This way, the Panamanian people, the country and world trade will benefit from the expansion.
The project of the Third Set of Locks, one of the most important infrastructure projects in the world, already has advanced the works to 70% completion. The Consortium is moving to finish the works with high quality and efficiency.
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GUPC, March 17, 2014; Image: Wikimedia