A consortium of investors from the United States led by investment company BlackRock will buy a controlling stake in the ports of the Panama Canal, writes The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Now the ports of Balboa and Cristobal are managed by the Hong Kong company CK Hutchison. The deal to acquire the two Panamanian ports is valued at $22.8bn and includes more than 40 other ports around the world.
A WSJ source directly involved in the deal said that Hutchison initially considered challenging in court any attempt to take the port business out of its control. However, the offer from BlackRock proved to be ‘very favourable’. Hutchison will retain the ports in Hong Kong and China. Several other Panamanian ports are managed by other companies, but Balboa and Cristobal are considered crucial.
Donald Trump said after his election to the presidency that the US could demand that the Panama Canal be returned to its control if the current terms of its use are not revised – he pointed to high tariffs for US ships. The US participated in the construction of the canal in the first half of the twentieth century, the facility was handed over to Panama in 1977 and came fully under the control of the country’s authorities in 1999.
Trump emphasised that the canal is considered a vital national asset for his country because of its critical role for the economy and national security. The biggest concern for the US was the Hong Kong company’s control of the canal’s facilities. Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino responded to Trump that ‘every metre of the Panama Canal belongs to Panama, it will be so,’ RBC recalls.