HONG KONG (AP) 鈥� Hong Kong鈥檚 CK Hutchison Holdings warned of legal action on Thursday against a Danish logistics and ports group, after the latter was tapped by Panamanian authorities to temporarily take over the operation of two critical ports at both ends of the Panama Canal from the Hong Kong conglomerate.
Panama鈥檚 Supreme Court that the concession held by a subsidiary of CK Hutchison to operate the two ports on the Panama Canal was unconstitutional. A subsidiary of Denmark-based A.P. Moller-Maersk would be operating the ports in a transitional phase, Panamanian authorities said earlier, until a new concession can be bid and awarded.
The saga surrounding the two Panama ports is part of a between the U.S. and China, with the Central American country . After U.S. President Donald Trump that China is 鈥渞unning the Panama Canal,鈥� CK Hutchison was expected to to a consortium that includes U.S. investment firm BlackRock. But that had triggered Beijing鈥檚 quick intervention, which had then .
The January ruling by Panama鈥檚 Supreme Court added further uncertainties to CK Hutchison鈥檚 plans to sell the two ports. Last week, the Hong Kong company said that it 鈥渟trongly disagreed鈥� with the ruling and that it had started arbitration proceedings against Panama.
On Thursday, CK Hutchison said in a statement that it was taking further steps to 鈥減rotect its rights and interests鈥� at the two Panama ports. It said it had notified A.P. Moller-Maersk that 鈥渁ny steps鈥� the Danish group or its subsidiary takes to operate the two ports without CK Hutchison’s agreement will likely 鈥渞esult in legal recourse.鈥�
Local subsidiary APM Terminals, asked to comment Thursday, said in a brief statement that it was not a party to the legal process involving the ports and had only expressed its willingness to the Panamanian government to temporarily take over operations at the ports 鈥渢o mitigate the risks that could affect essential services for regional and global trade.鈥�
While Panamanian President Jos茅 Ra煤l Mulino had earlier promised after the court decision that the two ports would continue to operate without interruption, the Hong Kong company said Thursday that the continued operation of the two ports 鈥渄epends solely on actions of the Panama Supreme Court and the Panamanian State,” which it can’t control.
CK Hutchison also said in its statement that it had notified Panama of a dispute 鈥減ursuant to an investment protection treaty鈥� to safeguard its rights and interests at the ports, on top of the arbitration procedure that it had taken earlier.
It said it will continue to consider and explore 鈥渁ll available recourse including additional national and international legal proceedings鈥� over the Panama ports.
, a subsidiary under CK Hutchison, has operated the two Panama ports since 1997 and was granted a renewal of its concession in 2021 for 25 years.
The Panama Canal itself 鈥� a crucial trade passage that links the Atlantic and Pacific 鈥� was built by the U.S. in the early 20th century. It was then operated by the U.S. for decades before Washington handed full control of the canal to Panama in 1999.
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