Cotecna de El Salvador S.A. de C.V.

Project description

On June 27, 2013, MIGA issued a guarantee of $23.8 million covering a shareholder loan from Cotecna S.A. of Switzerland (COSA) to Cotecna de El Salvador S.A. de C.V. The coverage is for a period of up to 12 years against the risks of transfer restriction, expropriation, war and civil disturbance, and breach of contract.[i]

A consortium established by COSA has been contracted to provide import verification services to the government of El Salvador under a 10-year build, operate, and transfer contract. The contract involves the financing, procurement, installation, and operation of import inspection equipment, including nine high-energy X-Ray scanners, six pallet scanners for air freight, seven trace detectors, four truck weighbridges, and one data control center that will coordinate and centralize all scanning operation centers in real time.

The project will introduce scanning technology that will reduce the clearance time for imported goods, thereby helping to reduce the cost of doing business for importers and their clients and contributing to international trade. The technology will also help prevent duty evasion and result in a more accurate assessment of the value of imported goods.

The project is fully in line with the priorities of the government’s 2012 Reform Act aimed at simplifying customs processes. At the end of the 10-year service contract, best-practice import verification equipment and technology will be transferred to the government. Cotecna El Salvador will provide training to the Customs Administration to prepare capacity for their eventual future takeover of operations. Cotecna El Salvador plans to employ about 135 local staff.