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12. Sectors: Panama

Sectors in Panama: the licences and limits that decide whether an energy, mining, port, shipping, telecom, fisheries or medicinal cannabis project can go ahead. Covers ASEP electricity concessions and licences, solar and wind incentives, the indefinite metal mining moratorium and the Cobre Panamá situation, AMP port concessions after the 2026 Balboa and Cristóbal ruling, the open ship registry, telecom concessions, ARAP fishing licences and aquaculture concessions, and the Ministry of Health cannabis licences, each tied to the official text.

Investor view. With an open ship registry, competitive power and telecom markets that welcome foreign private capital, and generous solar and wind incentives, Panama rewards investors who build real assets around the Canal, and the coming port tenders and any lawful resolution of Cobre Panamá are large openings for growth.

• Key sectors and regulators in Panama: who licenses energy, mining, ports, shipping, telecom, fisheries and cannabisPanama's regulated sectors each have a gatekeeper: ASEP for electricity and telecom, MICI for minerals, the Autoridad Marítima de Panamá for ports and the ship registry, ARAP for fisheries and aquacul
• Metal mining in Panama: the indefinite moratorium of Ley 407 de 2023, the Cobre Panamá ruling and what is still allowedSince 4 November 2023 no new concessions for exploring, extracting, transporting or processing metallic minerals can be granted, pending applications were rejected and no existing metal concession can
• Electricity market in Panama: concessions, generation licences, large customers, ownership limits and ASEP fines under Ley 6 de 1997Ley 6 de 1997, consolidated in a texto único of 5 July 2021 ordered by Ley 194 de 2020, splits the sector into generation, transmission, distribution and sale, regulated by the Autoridad Nacional de l
• Renewable energy incentives in Panama: solar under Ley 37 de 2013, wind under Ley 44 de 2011, tender preferences and self consumptionSolar and wind projects get duty, ITBMS and other tax exemptions on equipment, accelerated depreciation and technology specific power tenders: up to 20 years for solar contracts and up to 15 years for
• Ports in Panama: AMP concessions and operating licences under Ley 56 de 2008, the 2026 Balboa and Cristóbal ruling and transitional operatorsPorts and maritime services are granted by the Autoridad Marítima de Panamá (AMP): concessions by contract for up to 20 years, extendable once for an equal term, and operating licences for auxiliary s
• Panama ship registry under Ley 57 de 2008: who can flag a vessel, provisional and permanent documents, cancellation and cabotageAny person or company of any nationality or domicile can register vessels in Panama's Merchant Marine through a Panamanian lawyer or a consulate, appointing a resident agent. Ships get provisional doc
• Telecommunications in Panama under Ley 31 de 1996: type A and type B concessions, 20 year terms and foreign ownershipTelecom services need a concession: type A for services with temporary exclusivity or a limited number of operators, granted by the Cabinet after public tender, and type B for all others, granted by A
• Fisheries and aquaculture in Panama under Ley 204 de 2021: fishing licences, aquaculture concessions and finesLey 204 de 2021 makes the Autoridad de los Recursos Acuáticos de Panamá (ARAP) the authority for fishing and aquaculture, for Panamanians and foreigners alike and for Panamanian flagged vessels anywhe
• Medicinal cannabis in Panama under Ley 242 de 2021: manufacturing and research licences, the B/.150,000 fee and cultivation permitsLey 242 de 2021 allows medicinal and therapeutic cannabis through two licences issued by the Ministry of Health only to companies: a manufacturing licence for derivatives and a scientific research lic

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