The Panama Canal has issued a Request For Proposals (RFP) for the concession to design, develop, finance, construct, operate and maintain a container terminal located near Corozal, in the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal.
The four pre-qualified port operators , namely the Dutch APM Terminals, France’s Terminal Link, Singapore-based PSA International, and the Netherlands’ Terminal Investment Limited, now have until February 3, 2017 to submit the required specifications and economic proposals to compete for the 20-year concession.
As part of the Panama Canal Diversification Strategy, the Corozal Container Terminal will play an important role in providing additional port capacity on the Pacific side of Panama in order to support the transshipment needs of the larger vessels going through the Expanded Panama Canal.
To be developed in two phases and under the “green port” model, the terminal will be built within a 120-hectare area that is currently owned by the Panama Canal.
The project’s first phase will include 1,350 linear meters of quays, a container yard, superstructures, and three docking positions for simultaneous calls by Neo Panamax ships, and an approximate handling capacity of three million TEUs annually.
The second phase will include 731 linear meters of quays, with an additional capacity to operate and manage two additional Neopanamax ships and approximate handling capacity of two million TEUs annually.
Upon completion, the container terminal will have the capacity to handle more than five million TEUs at the canal’s entrance in the Pacific side.