Constitutional court backs Caldera port concession

Costa Rica's constitutional court has backed governmental authorities in offering Caldera port's modernization project under concession to foreign companies, an official from Costa Rica's concessions authority (CNC) told BNamericas. "In relation to the Caldera port project, the constitutional court approval really paves the way for us to move forward in carrying out the port's modernization works," CNC project engineer Edwin Rodríguez said, expanding on reports from newspaper La Nación. Further, constitutional judges found no contradictions in the general concessions law, a ruling that confirms governmental authority for offering any new public works projects or services under concession. Caldera's port modernization project has been on hold for four years due to a series of obstacles, including nine congressmen accusing the project as being unconstitutional and further objections from the country's general comptroller. In order to proceed with the works, CNC is now waiting for endorsement from the country's comptroller, which is expected in June, Rodríguez added. The two companies that await the project's start are Colombian-Costa Rican Consortium Portuario de Caldera, which will build a grains terminal and operate the existing cargo terminal; and Chile's Sudamericana Agencias Aéreas y Marítimas (SAAM), which plans to provide tugboat services. Caldera port is located on the Pacific ocean's Nicoya gulf - in Costa Rica's Puntarenas province - and it is the country's second largest port, with annual traffic of 2.6t in containers, general cargo and grains.