A Spanish-led consortium has resumed expansion work on the Panama Canal, which has been the subject of a dispute over who should pay up for 1.6 billion dollars (1.16 billion euros) of cost overruns.<br /><br />As workers returned to the construction site after a stoppage lasting more than two weeks, a source close to the consortium, led by Spanish builder Sacyr and Italy’s Salini Impregilo, said it had resolved internal disagreements over the key issue of financing.<br /><br />“The restarting of the works is being done in a way that will enable it to reach full pace in the shortest time possible,” the consortium said in a statement. <br /><br />Panama Canal administrator Jorge Quijano said: “We believe that with the discussion we had last night and the comments made, we can find a path out of this.” <br /><br />The authority plans to settle remaining issues over the next three days, including delivery dates of huge lock gates being built in Europe.<br /><br />The project, to build two new sets of locks to accommodate larger ships along the canal – which connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans – is months behind schedule.
