Dayhoff Soundtrack: As Costs Soar, Who Will Pay For The Panama Canal's Expansion? By JACKIE NORTHAM January 08, 2014

Tuesday, February 04, 2014

As Costs Soar, Who Will Pay For The Panama Canal's Expansion? By JACKIE NORTHAM January 08, 2014

http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2014/01/08/260793027/as-costs-soar-who-will-pay-for-the-panama-canals-expansion

A view of the Panama Canal last Thursday. The canal is being widened to accommodate larger ships, but the builders and the canal operators are locked in a dispute about who will pay the higher-than-expected costs to finish the project.

Alejandro Bolivar/EPA /Landov

For five years, a multibillion-dollar expansion has been underway on the Panama Canal so that ships three times the current size can pass through the vital waterway. The new, wider canal will alter global trade routes and dramatically increase revenue for Panama's government, primarily from toll charges.

The expansion is more than two-thirds done, but now a funding dispute between the builders and the canal operators threatens to bring construction to a halt.

A mostly European building consortium called GUPC issued an ultimatum saying it would suspend work on the project unless Panama's government ponied up an extra $1.6 billion to help cover cost overruns.

Pedro Alonso, a spokesman for Sacyr, the Spanish company heading the project, says there were many unforeseen problems that forced up the cost…

Also see: http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/2014/02/2014-eventful-year-before-it-even.html

World Central America Panama, World Central America Panama Canal,

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