The Panama Maritime Authority (AMP) along with Panama’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs have renewed their Agreement on Maritime Transport with the governments of both Panama and China.

The new agreement entered into force on July 21 this year, however, in order to avoid disrupting its implementation, it was decided that both parties would continue to benefit from its provisions from May 17 until the time that the new deal entered into force.

The deal will be extended to five years, from the three years provided under the previous agreement, which began on July 1, 2018. This means that Panama-flagged ships will enjoy lower port expenses throughout China.

Panama and China signed a bilateral Agreement on Maritime Transport in November 2017 — which included Panama in the list of cooperative nations and promoted the competitiveness of the Ship Registry.

A Memorandum of Understanding related to maritime issues was later on signed by China’s Ministry of Transport and the AMP.

The renewal of the agreement notes many advantages for Panama-flagged vessels including expediting maritime transport to avoid unnecessary delays; granting favorable treatment in the collection of tonnage fees based on preferential rates; promoting the supply of services to Panama-flagged vessels, and maintaining close relations that allow free and unimpeded access of Panama-flagged vessels for cargo traffic to and from China.