South Korean consortium beats Chinese rivals on bids to build Panama metro line

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co

19/11/2019 03:28

By Elida Moreno
    PANAMA CITY, Nov 18 (Reuters) - A consortium led by South
Korea's Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co  000720.KS 
presented the most competitive bid to a tender for building the
third subway line in Panama City, authorities said on Monday,
beating two Chinese rivals.
    Beijing has long courted Central American nations with
infrastructure financing and investment, angering Washington.
Though Panama's new President Laurentino "Nito" Cortizo, who
took office in July, has vowed a more balanced approach.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N22I0U6
    Panama's latest ambitious infrastructure project aims to
build the longest metro line in the capital of the Central
American isthmus nation and has the additional complications of
having to cross its famous shipping canal. 
    HPH Joint Venture, the consortium, which also comprises
Posco Engineering Construction Co  POSCON.UL  and Hyundai
Engineering Co  HYENG.UL , exceeded the $2.4 billion price tag
Panama had established but still won. 
    Two of the four bidders were led by Chinese companies.
    Panama has historically been of strategic interest to
powerful nations, with its trans-oceanic canal one of the
world's key trade routes that enables, for example, Chinese
products to reach the U.S. East Coast.

 (Reporting by Elida Moreno and Miguel Angel Gutierrez; writing
by Stefanie Eschenbacher; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
 ((Stefanie.Eschenbacher@thomsonreuters.com;))