THE PANAMA Maritime Authority has picked up the ball dropped by the previous administration and budgeted $30 million to develop a long awaited cruise ship port in Amador to boost the country’s tourism facilities.

This is the second attempt to build a port in the last five years. The previous attempt was cancelled when the project was deemed financially undoable.

Unlike the previous project, which was going to be located at the site of the Balboa Yacht Club, the new project is slated for Perico island.

Authority Manager Jorge Barakat said the new location has as a depth of 7 to 12 meters and is sheltered from waves. It also providez views of Panama City making it a better site than the one at the yacht club, which was much shallower and would have needed constant dredging to allow the cruise ships to dock.

If approved, the construction will take up to 18 months. The project will include an area for commercial establishments, reports La Prensa.

The government is hoping to contract the project with a firm that has experience in developing and operating such facilities.

Augusto Terracina, manager of Aventuras 2000, which manages the cruise port in Colón, said the project would be a benefit for the country, as the only way to attract more cruise ships to the country is to improve the infrastructure.