OTHER ADVANTAGES FOR SHIPOWNERS UNDER THE PANAMANIAN FLAG.

With ends to obtain a greater benefit from its geographical position, and its great potential for development as a maritime nation, the Republic of Panama has adopted a policy of promotion and protection for productive investments that enter the country.

The Panamanian legislation guarantees investments incentives, especially to those companies involved in industrial activities, whether national, foreign or mixed, with or without the government's participation. The ship owners are also invited to use these benefits.

· Colon Free Zone: The Colon Free Zone is the largest and most active of its kind in this continent, and the second in the world, after Hong Kong. The operations carried out in the Colon Free Zone include the transshipment of merchandise between vessels and aircraft, merchandise storage, processing, assembly of manufacturing and light industry, as well as the storage of merchandise for indeterminate periods before its re-exportation to other countries.

· International Banking and Financial Center: Due to the special structure of the Panamanian policy regarding the financial, economic, monetary and banking matters, the Republic of Panama has become a growing and important banking and financial center.

· Currently there are a hundred and twenty five (125) national and international banks, operating in the country, and virtually the largest financial corporations of America, Europe and Asia, have a substantial presence in Panama nowadays.

· Maritime Insurance: The action sphere of the International Banking and Financial Center has been complemented through the implementation of an excellent insurance and re-insurance system, which has motivated the participation of a great number of large international companies. There are several companies established with the capacity to deal with maritime insurance.

· Installations for ship repairs: In the last five years, the Administration through the General Directorate of Ports and Maritime Ancillary Industries, has developed a dry dock complex with the capacity to manage every type of vessels in the three main Panamanian Ports: Balboa, Cristobal and Coco Solo.

· The Panama Canal: Since 1914, a locks canal that can be called a "Bridge of Water" has joined the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean in Panama. Since its inauguration, the inter-oceanic canal has gone through different processes of modernization and technological advances in order to speed up ship transit with safety, efficiency and at the most competitive cost possible.