Fact or fiction?

The Government’s perception is that Nicaragua needs to develop a Caribbean port in order for the country to continue to trade cost-effectively with its largest markets. As a result, the Nicaraguan Port Authority (NPA) has been developing a project to establish a deepwater port comprising container, bulk and liquid terminals at Monkey Point on the Caribbean coast.

The global economic downturn was only one reason why there has been no international stampede to invest in the Monkey Point project to date. With Honduras and Costa Rica planning to expand existing, viable ports, potential investors seem to be of the opinion that there is no room for another port one on the Caribbean Coast of Central America.

Moreover, the IMF is strictly controlling Nicaragua’s indebtedness and the Nicaraguan Central Bank has not approved the project. There is also doubt that shipping lines will want to add an extra call for what is a small volume of business: any savings in overland transport costs to the shippers/consignees would probably be offset by higher freight charges.