Nicaragua on Thursday announced approval of an environmental and social impact study on a new canal that will link the Pacific with the Atlantic, allowing the project to go ahead.
The Interoceanic Grand Canal Commission presented its approval on the study, giving the green light for the Hong Kong-based firm HKND to start the structural and construction design phase of the megaproject.
Manuel Coronel Kautz, the commission's president, said the monitoring of the environmental impact of the project will continue throughout the construction phase of the waterway.
"These studies, seen as a process, not as an end in themselves, are key to being able to launch the works," said Coronel.
The 50 billion-U.S.-dollar project, which will rival the Panama Canal when completed in 2019, is being built in the country's southwest region. The 278 km-long canal, which will be able to accommodate cargo ships with a maximum capacity of 18,000 shipping containers, is expected to spur the economy and potentially turn the country into a Central American trade hub.
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