Work has been halted on the expansion of the Panama Canal, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, following a breakdown in talks between the Panama Canal Authority (APC) and the Spanish-led consortium behind the project.
The consortium is made up of Spain’s Sacyr, Impregilo of Italy, Belgian firm Jan De Nul and Constructora Urbana, a Panamanian firm.
The two sides are engaged in a dispute over who should foot the bill for cost overruns totalling $1.6 billion. According to a statement by Sacyr, Without an immediate solution, they face years of disputes in national and international tribunals.
Spanish construction projects are accustomed to almost inevitable overruns, renegotiation of budgets and endless tribunals to resolve issues but the main question must be, how did it get to such a large amount before something was done?