The terminal operator Panama Ports Company (PPC) of the CK Hutchison Holdings group of Hong Kong denounces that the Republic of Hong Kong of Panama is delaying the time of the arbitration that opposes them at the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration and that by doing so - the company highlighted in a note - "continues to lose credibility as a destination for foreign investment due to persistent non-compliance with the rule of law and the non-return of the assets of the investors, a few weeks after the unlawful seizure of port terminals".

PPC refers to the seizure of assets and activities operated by the terminal operator company for the management of the two ports Panamanian Movement of Balboa and Cristóbal which was implemented after the Supreme Court of Justice of Panama had declared the law on the concession agreement with the Panama Ports Company which is entered into force in 1997 and in 2021 it was automatically Renovated for another 25 years ( of 30 January and 23 February 2026). Criticism of the assignment of the management of the two leads to the company that, through Hutchison Port Holdings (Hutchison Ports), headed by China's CK Hutchison, are already to when PPC was chosen to operate the two ports Central Americans, which are located at both ends of the canal of Panama, and worsened at the beginning of last year when the US President Donald Trump had threatened to give back to the Use channel control ( of 23 and 27 January and 8 April 2025). In the meantime, the consortium formed by the company of American investment BlackRock and Terminal Investment Limited of the MSC shipping group had signed an agreement for buy 90% of the capital of the Panama Ports Company and last year the Panamanian government, following the Court's ruling Supreme Court of Justice, had assigned transitional management of the port of Balboa to APM Terminals of the Maersk shipping group and the port of Cristóbal to the same Terminal Investment Limited ( of 4 March 2025 and 24 February 2026).

The Panama Ports Company has now denounced that the Republic of Panama "did not submit its response to arbitration international project initiated by PPC within the original deadline set by the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration, or Friday, March 13, 2026. Panama - PPC specified - has declared that it was not prepared and that it was not able to respond in time because he had not appointed lawyers, knew the controversy and needed time to work out a plan and obtain a partial extension, despite the fact that Panama had recently announced that it has taken the last year to develop a plan for ports and despite PPC having notified the State almost a year earlier, due to the defamatory campaign conducted by the State against him. Furthermore - the PPC denounced again - Panama did not follow up, efforts by PPC and its investors to find solutions, which suggests that Panama could simply devising and announcing further unfounded attacks in arbitration seat. A state that respects foreign investors - emphasized Panama Ports Company - does not ignore the consultations and international dispute resolution procedures.