PANAMA CITY, Jan 30 (Reuters) – The Supreme Court of Panama said a contract held by a Hong Kong company to operate ports at the Panama Canal failed to “serve the public interest and social welfare,” in its decision on Thursday voiding the contracts. While the court announced the decision on Thursday, it had not released the ruling explaining its rationale.
The decision was obtained by local television station TVN and a court official confirmed its veracity.
Panama Ports Company (PPC), a subsidiary of Hong-Kong based CK Hutchison subsidiary, has held contracts since the 1990s to operate container terminals at the canal’s Pacific and Atlantic entrances.
The court said the contract violated Panama’s constitution because it gave the company exclusive privileges and tax exemptions unavailable to other competitors, lacked environmental impact assessments and required the government to seek the company’s approval before granting future concessions.
(Reporting by Elida Moreno, Additional reporting by Natalia Siniawski and Kylie Madry; Editing by Emily Green)
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