The Panamanian and Chinese consortium continues work on the fourth bridge

He Government of Panama and the Chinese consortium signed an addendum this Wednesday that will allow construction to restart “in the coming months.” The fourth bridge over the Channel interoceanic, a “mega piece” of infrastructure with an adjusted cost of 1,372.1 million dollars.

This project was awarded in 2018 Panama Fourth Bridge Consortium (CPCP)composed of companies China Communications Construction Company LTD and China Harbor Engineering Company LTDwith a price tag of $1.420 million and a connection to the third subway line, but financing problems and design changes halted work in 2020.

Therefore, the addendum signed this Wednesday that “enables the continuation of the project (…) includes changes to the original contract, so that the consortium continues to design and build the project for a net value of $1,372.1 million, after separating its construction from The third line of the Panamanian metro“, he pointed out Ministry of Public Works (MOP).

In addition, it was agreed to “modify some components of the original project, including the removal of the gazebo and restaurant that were considered, as well as adjusting the width of the main deck, the exchanger and the type of columns. In addition, the maintenance phase was eliminated, since it was rated to give project into an administrative concession,” the official information states.

He added that the supplement “includes the financial structure of the project presented by the banks Santander, Mizuho and Banistmo for an approximate value of 716.5 million dollars, approved by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.”

The disbursement of the corresponding payments will begin “in 2026, respecting the maximum amounts of available funds established by the MOP,” according to an official statement, noting that “this transaction is what will guarantee the delivery of this important work to the country.”

Head of MOP, Raphael Sabongehe confirmed that “construction works” will resume “in the coming months”, after the “consortium’s expert team” completes the “master design, studies and other field work”.

The Ministry of Public Works (MOP) announced that it is estimated that the construction of st The fourth bridge over the Panama Canal will generate some 4000 direct jobs, without specifying how much time is needed to complete the works.

The original project was supposed to take 54 months to build, and the works were supposed to have a lifespan of 100 years, the Chinese consortium said five years ago.

The new bridge will relieve congested traffic in the Panamanian capital, speeding up, according to government calculations, daily movement 70,000 vehicles and benefits 1.7 million people.