Cosco Shipping, parent company of Cosco Shipping Ports Chancay Peru, has notified the Peruvian Government about the beginning of a six-month negotiation period, within the framework of the FTA with China, to find a solution to the controversy over the exclusivity of services at its terminal north of Lima. If no solution is found, they will initiate a million-dollar international arbitration.
The company is fundamentally opposed to two aspects: the withdrawal, through a judicial action presented by the MTC Attorney’s Office, of the exclusivity of services that was granted to them in 2021; and the application of a tariff that Ositrán proposed, and for which the Peruvian regulator had even requested an opinion from Indecopi.
Sources from La República who follow the case closely indicated that “there is a clear intention of the Ositran to establish for Cosco a regulation of rates and supervision that, according to the National Port System Law, does not correspond to private projects.”
The FTA has mechanisms. Before going to arbitration, “which would be a complicated situation for the company,” it allows a process of “friendly conversation” to begin. to find a solution to both issues. The deadline expires in October, one month before the APEC 2024 Forum.
“If it is not resolved, the investor is free to initiate international arbitration against the Peruvian statein front of a court of independent arbitrators who will have to decide the fate of the controversy,” said the same source.
The letter to which this newspaper had access accuses “manifestly unfair and inequitable treatment, among other violations of the treaty, that the Peruvian State has been committing.” He argues that, according to art. 1114 of the National Port System Law, “a private party that undertakes to invest in a publicly owned port terminal has the right to its exclusive operation.”
“Therefore, it can only be a necessary consequence of the private nature […] especially if you are operating and exploiting private infrastructure, in the private domain, built at your own expense, cost and risk,” he details.
Since the letter signed by Chen Lihui, general manager of Cosco, arrived at the MEF and Foreign Ministry offices on April 16, the Peruvian Government has not approached the company.
“They have only said, unofficially, that they will solve the problem. How much can the arbitration requirement be? It is still too early to tell, but it will definitely not be a low amount,” he adds.
From the dream of the hub to international arbitration
Julio Pérez, president of ADEX, regretted that the vigorous FTA with China (US$23,156 million in 2023) is now the subject of a controversy. For this reason, he asked the Government not to get involved in “technicalities” that prevent the development of Chancay. “Peru is one of the most in-demand countries, and we usually lose. Who pays it? All the citizens”, accused.
Source: Larepublica
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