Consortia Interested in Baru

Three foreign consortia have expressed interest in settling in the free zone of Baru, Chiriqui Province, to build a logistics center, a refinery for processing hydrocarbons, and a tourist center, taking advantage of the Baru area’s geographical position, as well as the pipeline which can transport oil from the Caribbean to the Pacific and vice versa, said the Minister of Commerce, Ricardo Quijano.

The minister did not disclose names or amounts, but said he hoped that a contract will be signed by one of the companies, according to an article in Prensa.com.

"The last attempt to install a refinery in Baru sank after the Canadian company Occidental Petroleum lost its concession to drill for oil in Ecuador, from where it would have imported the crude oil to be processed in Panama", added the website.

Source: Prensa.com

More on this topic

Mega Refinery in Baru, Panama?

November 2011

A group of investors are interested in building an $8 billion refinery in the Baru area.

Minister of Trade and Industry, Ricardo Quijano, said that a memorandum of understanding, outlining the projects details, would be signed off in the next few weeks.

The proposed refinery would be capable of processing about 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily, and would be accompanied by a logistics center and a tourist resort.

El Salvador: National Concession System

March 2011

The union of private companies submitted a proposal for the creation of a national concessions system.

The National Association of Private Enterprises (ANEP) stated that through a working concession mechanism, the country can attract foreign investment for road infrastructure projects, telecommunications, energy, logistics, etc.

Funding Agreed for Refinery in Costa Rica

December 2011

China and Costa Rica have signed an agreement for funding via the China Development Bank to build a refinery in the province of Limon.

The China Development Bank (CDB) will provide financing between $800 and $900 million and the rest will be contributed equally by the Costa Rican Oil Refinery (Recope) and the China National Petroleum Corporation International (CNPCI).

Oil and Gas in Panama

January 2011

The Government plans to tender in March 2011, concessions for the exploration and exploitation in different areas of the country.

As part of the process and to make it more attractive for investment, changes in current exploitation of hydrocarbons, which dates back to 1987, will be studied.