LatinNews Daily - 20 August 2026

*Hong Kong-headquartered CK Hutchison Holdings (CKHH) has announced that it has begun arbitration proceedings against Panama and is seeking damages of more than US$1.5bn for breaches of treaty obligations and international law. The case relates to the Panamanian government’s takeover of the Balboa and Cristóbal ports on the Panama Canal following a January 2026 supreme court (CSJ) ruling striking down the concession amid geopolitical tensions with the US. According to a statement by CKHH, it “notified Panama of a treaty dispute on 4 February 2026, following a year-long State attack campaign on the company’s assets, and sought to resolve the dispute to no avail”. It said that “Panama ultimately held only one perfunctory consultation meeting more than six months after the treaty notice, and has made no offer of compensation or resolution.” Panama Ports Company (PPC), the CKHH subsidiary in Panama, has also announced an arbitration case against Panama in a separate case, and is seeking over US$2bn in damages. PPC has also announced arbitration proceedings against Danish shipping company Maersk, whose Netherlands-based subsidiary APM Terminals (APMT) assumed control of Balboa port. The announcement of arbitration proceedings comes despite recent signs of an improvement in Panama-China relations which had soured over the striking down of the port concessions, with Panama having also denounced a significant rise in the number of Panama-flagged vessels detained by China for instance as a reprisal for the CSJ ruling.

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