COSTA Rica’s Comptroller General (CGR) will review the Puerto Caldera port tender after accepting an appeal from International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI).
The CGR granted the Costa Rican Pacific Ports Institute (Incop) and the winning Sunset Consortium five business days to respond, with a final ruling due within 40 to 55 business days.
Incop disqualified ICTSI on Feb. 18 for exceeding the maximum debt-to-equity ratio. ICTSI appeals this decision, stating Incop confirmed its compliance one week prior but then altered its calculation methodology without technical justification, changing ICTSI’s ratio from 1.33 to 2.16 using the same financial data.
Following ICTSI’s exclusion, the contract was awarded to the Sunset Consortium (APM Terminals B.V. and HGT Inversiones Costa Rica S.A.). ICTSI’s appeal challenges the award, citing statements from former congressman Eli Feinzaig that over 60 percent of the consortium’s financial files are illegible.
The appeal also cites engineering claims that Sunset’s dock design violates international safety rules and overstates weather-dependent dock availability.
Additionally, ICTSI alleges the consortium between two direct competitors constitutes an absolute monopolistic practice that Incop failed to report to antitrust authority Coprocom. A separate competition law investigation is ongoing.
For his part, Bart Wiersum, director, Business Development, Americas at International Container Terminal Services Inc., welcomed the CGR’s decision: “We welcome the CGR’s decision as a first step toward correcting a process plagued by irregularities and lack of transparency.”