Panama wrests control of canal ports from Hong Kong group

PANAMA CITY

A view of the Port of Balboa, managed by CK Hutchison Holdings based in Hong Kong, at the entrance to the Panama Canal in Panama City, on Feb. 5, 2026. AFP

Panamanian authorities have taken control of two ports on the Panama Canal from CK Hutchison after the Hong Kong-based conglomerate's concession was annulled amid a row between the United States and China.

CK Hutchison objected Tuesday to the takeover, which it called "unlawful" and said raises "serious risks to the operations, health and safety" at terminals."

In January, the country's supreme court declared as "unconstitutional" the contract which had allowed Hutchison's subsidiary Panama Ports Company (PPC) to manage the ports of Balboa on the Pacific and Cristobal on the Atlantic since 1997.

The court ruling was the latest legal move to ripple through the interoceanic waterway, which handles about 40 percent of U.S. container traffic and five percent of world trade.

The Central American country has been swept up in broader tensions between Washington and Beijing, with U.S. President Donald Trump claiming, without providing evidence, last year that China effectively runs the canal.

Panama has always denied Chinese control over the 80-kilometer waterway, which is used mainly by the United States and China.

Hutchison had asked the Panamanian government to enter into negotiations to allow it to continue operating the two terminals -- to no avail.

Publication of the court ruling in the official gazette Monday effectively ended the legal process.

"This does not imply the expropriation of those assets, but rather their use to guarantee the operation of the ports until their real value is determined for the corresponding actions," said Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino.

Ports director Max Florez said an 18-month transition period now begins, with the ports being operated by two other companies before contracts are awarded under a new international tender.