Pratik Bijlani –
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) is set to expand its role in global trade by entering the ports business, with plans to launch a tender for two new terminals — one on the Atlantic coast and another on the Pacific — both connected to a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) pipeline.
ACP Administrator Ricaurte Vásquez announced the move during an interview in New York, noting that the ports will be owned by the canal and operated by a third party. “We are coming into the game of port terminals,” Vásquez said, adding that the initiative forms part of an ambitious $8.5 billion capital investment program over the next seven years, which also includes a new water reservoir, roads, and highways.
The decision comes at a politically charged moment. U.S. President Donald Trump has accused China of exerting undue influence over the canal, even threatening to take control of the waterway — claims Panama has firmly rejected. While Hong Kong–based CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd. operates existing Atlantic and Pacific ports outside the canal’s jurisdiction, Beijing has no role in the canal’s operations.
Vásquez said the ACP plans to introduce modern crane technology to improve efficiency and compete with regional leaders like Colombia’s Port of Cartagena. Meanwhile, President José Raúl Mulino has pledged to develop a national maritime logistics strategy, even as Panama’s comptroller challenges CK Hutchison’s port contract extension.
The canal is also benefiting from a surge in shipments ahead of new U.S. tariffs, pushing 2024 revenues to nearly $5 billion — though ACP forecasts a decline to $4.4 billion next year. Improved rainfall has allowed the canal to maintain a 50-foot draft, easing operational constraints after two years of drought.
As geopolitical tensions grow, Panama continues to assert its full sovereignty over the waterway — a lifeline of global maritime trade.
Marex Media