Dubai port operator and developer DP World has broken ground on a greenfield multi-purpose port project at Posorja, Ecuador, at the delta of the Guayas River in the south of the country.
The port was first agreed in June last year. The decision was controversial because SP World gained the contract without going through a competitive bidding process.
Contencon, the Filippino company that has run the neighbouring container terminal at Guayaquil since 2007, threatened to take legal action against DP World for unfair competition. Contencon is a subsidiary of Philippine port operator International Container Terminal Services. In the event, this claim was rejected by Ecuador’s competition authority.
