Panama’s Supreme Court has upheld a one million dollar fine against the consortium building the country’s Fourth Bridge over the Panama Canal. The Third Chamber of the court ruled this week that the penalty, issued by the Ministry of Public Works (Panama) in 2019 for project delays, was legally applied. This decision represents a significant legal victory for the state as it pushes forward on the massive $2.1 billion infrastructure project.
The ruling, detailed in Edict No. 3,182, was signed by magistrates María Cristina Chen Stanziola and Carlos Vásquez Reyes. It specifically validates a 2019 note from the Ministry’s Special Projects Office director that imposed the financial sanction. The fine was levied because the consortium missed two critical deadlines that year for delivering 90 percent of the bridge’s design plans.
Legal Dispute Over Contractual Authority
Following the fine, the Panama Fourth Bridge Consortium, comprised of Communications Construction Company and China Harbour Engineering, filed a lawsuit seeking to nullify the penalty. They argued the Special Projects Office lacked the legal authority to impose such a fine during the design phase. The consortium also contended the public entity acted contradictorily by demanding both accelerated work and substantial design changes, notably the removal of the planned Metro Line 3 from the bridge structure.
The court’s decision rejected these arguments. It found the ministry’s actions were within its rights to ensure timely project completion. The state had argued the delays forced it to find alternative solutions to finish both the bridge and the separate Metro Line 3 project on schedule.
“The note issued by the director of the Special Projects Office of the MOP on September 12, 2019, is not illegal,” the court’s edict stated. [Translated from Spanish]
Magistrate Cecilio Cedalise submitted a dissenting vote on the ruling, though the majority opinion stands. The legal affirmation allows the Ministry of Public Works to continue enforcing the contract terms as it oversees construction. This includes managing a project currently employing about a thousand workers, with projections to create three thousand jobs at its peak.
With the legal challenge resolved, focus returns to the physical construction. The Fourth Bridge is a cable-stayed design using steel and concrete, stretching 965 meters across the canal. Its main tower will reach 186 meters high, providing 75 meters of vertical clearance for shipping traffic. The project’s total cost includes $640 million in financing.
The ruling from the Supreme Court of Justice of Panama reinforces the government’s contractual oversight powers on major projects. It also removes a potential obstacle for a project critical to easing traffic congestion around the vital Panama Canal waterway. Construction on the permanent foundation for the main tower began in December 2024.