We here at Bala Beach are really getting excited to see all of the developments at our project site in Maria Chiquita.  Things have been kicking into high-gear, and we have lots of activity, with crews working 6-days-a-week on Bala.  The construction support buildings that will house all of the tools, equipment, supplies and materials for the construction of the towers have been erected, along with rest/lunch areas for the crew and a large fenced-in area to house some of the heavy machinery at night.

As for the first two towers in the ‘horseshoe’ of the development, the hill-top location has been completely cleared, graded and surveyed, and the piling machine is on-site, completely put-together, and is currently drilling down into the earth to place the concrete foundation pilings.  With the foundations set to be done in the next month or so, the piling rig will be moved next door to the site of building two, and will begin drilling there as well.  We are excited that in the next couple months, we should be able to see buildings one and two emerging from the ground, as the dream of Bala Beach Resort becomes a reality.

In the next few weeks, we will be posting new pictures of the site activity, and producing a new movie about all of the updates at Bala Beach.  Please, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, do not hesitate to get in touch with us at info@balabeach.com.

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Adapted from:

 “Recortes de Continental no afectarán a Panamá,” Friday August 1, 2008, Roberto Gonzalez Jimenez, laprensa.com.pa

“Turismo al día, Copa anuncia nuevos destinos y Tocumen licita el muelle norte,” Thursday August 7, 2008, Roberto Gonzalez Jimenez, laprensa.com.pa

                                                                        

 

More Flights Over Panamanian Skies

 

With all of the economic hardship making the news these days, airline companies have stood out as some of the hardest hit. Many air carriers are trying to survive any way that they can by laying off workers, adding new fees for passengers and by cutting back on flights.

 

Continental Airlines announced in June that it would be firing 3,000 employees and eliminating its least profitable flights. They have already begun to reduce their activity in Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Chile and the Dominican Republic.

 

Panama however does not appear on this list. Continental Airlines manager in Panama Ana Lorena Arroyo says that the airline is actually adding the capacity for more passengers to its Panama flights by bringing in an airplane that seats 25 more people. Nor will the US-based company be dropping any of the 90 employees that it currently has working in on the ground in Panama.

 

While Continental reinforces its commitment to Panama, many other airlines are also strengthening their presence in the isthmus. The Amsterdam based KLM Airlines used to fly once a week directly to San Jose, Costa Rica. Observing changes in market opportunities, the company decided to shift this flight to Panama instead. The KLM non-stop Amsterdam – Panama flight was initially offered only once per week but as occupancy improved, KLM has now decided to operate the route five times per week.

 

Direct flights between Panama and Toronto are currently operating every Sunday and more flight options between Canada and Panama are expected to come as we approach the tourism high season in the coming months.

 

Panama-based Copa Airlines is expanding from Panama outward, opening new connections with Valencia, Venezuela; Oranjestad, Aruba; and Santa Cruz, Bolivia starting in December. Copa is also adding six new airplanes to its fleet bringing it up to 43 airplanes in total.

 

In order to accommodate all of the new activity, Panama’s Tocumen International Airport is proceeding with plans to add a new northern terminal by 2010. This expansion will effectively double the overall passenger capacity at the airport which has seen a 22.1% increase in passenger activity in the first semester of this year versus the same time period in 2007.

 

Panama continues to be an increasingly popular place to visit and major airline companies worldwide are responding. Even in today’s times of economic hardship, Panama is a location receiving lots of attention from all over the world, primed for consistent development and growth.

 

This post is tagged under air travel | airline tickets | airports | amsterdam | beachfront condos | beachfront resorts | best place to retire | canada | caribbean beaches | caribbean tourism | Central America | cheapest place to live | cheapest place to retire | connecting flights | direct flights | international living | Latin America | Panama Paradise | Panama Real Estate | panama tourism | tropical beaches
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Excerpts adapted from:

“Manzanillo crecio 20%,” Friday July 11, 2008, Wilfredo Jordan Serrano, laprensa.com.pa

“Balboa superará a Santos,” Friday July 11, 2008, Wilfredo Jordan Serrano, laprensa.com.pa

 

Panama Matures as the Shipping Hub of the Americas

 

Even within the current global economic slowdown, Panama continues to be on the rise. One example of the increased economic activity taking place on the isthmus can be witnessed within the shipping industry. In the first half of 2008, the Manzanillo International Terminal (MIT) port facility on the Caribbean side of Panama moved 708,319 shipping containers, an increase of 20% compared to the previous year. These numbers are due to the fact that economic growth continues in Latin America even as much of the United States and Europe appears to be slowing down.

  

Locally, Panama is undergoing a tremendous real estate boom. Equipment and materials that are moving through the shipping containers in and along the canal are directly related to new construction happening in Panama as well as the build up to the new expansion of the Panama Canal. Maritime activity on the Pacific side of the Canal directly affects operations on the Caribbean side as well, dealing with cargo that moves from one ocean to the other both via the Panama Canal and the trans-isthmus railway.

 

These increases in cargo movement highlight only the beginning in terms of where Panama’s maritime transport industry is headed. The Panama Canal expansion is still only in its earliest stages. By the end of the calendar year 2008, Balboa Port on the Pacific side of the Canal hopes to become the largest mover of sea cargo in all of Latin America according to the manager of Panama Ports Company Alejandro Kouruklis.

 

Under the fourth phase of its expansion, Balboa Port will be adding an additional 420 square meters of dock space and four new cranes. At the moment the port holds 18 cranes and 1,270 square meters of loading space, allowing it to serve four ships simultaneously. In 2007 Balboa Port moved 1.8 million cargo containers while the port facility Santos in Brazil was number one in Latin America moving 2.9 million. With the new additions to Balboa Port in Panama the goal is to move 3 million containers by the end of 2008 and become the shipping services port leader for all of Latin America. Traditional port movement combined with the use of the Panama Canal and the Panama Canal Railway all lend Panama to have one of the most strategic, efficient and busiest port facilities in the entire world.

This post is tagged under best place to retire | caribbean beach | caribbean coast | international business | international opportunity | international shipping | international travel | latin american business | latin american investment | panama canal | Panama investment | panama living | panama ports | Panama Real Estate | shipping cargo | tropical beaches
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