The Panama Maritime Authority, which oversees shipping and port infrastructure in the country, will request all legal and financial documents from a key transaction between CK Hutchison (0001.HK), and a consortium backed by BlackRock (BLK.N),  minister to presidency Juan Carlos Orillac said on Friday.

U.S. BlackRock announced this week that a group of investors, including Global Infrastructure Partners and Terminal Investment, agreed to buy most of the port business of Hong Kong-based conglomerate CK Hutchison, including its 90% stake in Panama Ports Company, which operates the Balboa and Cristobal terminals under a 25-year concession.
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The maritime authority is expected to analyze the transaction, which gives control of the two ports strategically located near the Panama Canal to the BlackRock-backed group, at the cabinet’s request, to ensure that public interest in the terminals will be protected, Orillac added in a release.
A separate audit of CK Hutchison’s port concession, which was renewed in 2021, is yet to be completed by Panama’s Comptroller General office.
The CK Hutchison-BlackRock broad deal involves the Hong-Kong firm’s 80% stake in Hutchison Ports with an equity value of $14.21 billion. However, the conglomerate will receive more than $19 billion following repayment of some shareholder loans.
Source: REUTERS