New project bill on public-private partnerships

The recently installed government is promoting a new bill to regulate for the first time public-private partnerships (PPP) for the development of investment projects. The project bill is currently under discussion at the National Assembly of Panama. If approved, the law will apply to entities of the central government, municipalities, and companies controlled by the State. Within the PPP modality, the private contractor is in charge of the financing, construction, exploitation, operation, and maintenance of the public asset and assumes the risks of the project.