Panama’s government asked Chinese shipping giant COSCO Shipping to reconsider its suspension of operations at the Balboa port at the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. Minister for Canal Affairs Jose Ramon Icaza said the decision caught authorities by surprise and expressed hope the company would return.
The request follows COSCO Shipping Lines’ notice to clients dated March 10 that halted all arrivals and departures at Balboa. The advisory canceled confirmed bookings and directed empty containers to terminals in Colon province on the Atlantic side. Icaza told reporters that COSCO accounts for four percent of cargo moving through Balboa.
“The COSCO issue has really taken us a little bit by surprise,” he said. “All cargo is important, and certainly COSCO’s cargo is important for us, for Panama, and we obviously hope that they will reconsider that decision not to use the port of Balboa.” Panamanian authorities took control of the Balboa and Cristobal ports on February 23 after the Supreme Court ruled the operating contracts unconstitutional. Panama Ports Company, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings, had run both terminals since 1997.
The government assigned temporary operations to APM Terminals, a unit of Danish shipping company Maersk, at Balboa and to MSC’s Terminal Investment Limited at Cristobal for up to 18 months ahead of a new international tender. China had warned Panama it would pay a heavy price following the court ruling and takeover.
The ports sit at either end of the Panama Canal, an 80-kilometer (50-mile) waterway under full Panamanian control since 1999. Panama has denied claims of Chinese influence over the canal itself, which operates separately through the Panama Canal Authority. U.S. President Donald Trump claimed last year without evidence that China effectively controls the route. The dispute intensified amid broader U.S.-China tensions over strategic infrastructure.
Panama’s ports handled 9.9 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers in 2025, according to the Panama Maritime Authority. Balboa alone processed about 2.7 million TEUs. COSCO Shipping has not commented publicly on the suspension or Panama’s appeal. Icaza declined to speculate on the company’s motives.
Officials say port operations continue under interim management with no disruption reported to existing cargo. Panama plans a full tender process for permanent operators once the transitional period ends.
