The Panamanian government announced on Tuesday their plans to save an estimated $40 million annually by constructing a new building to house public entities as an alternative to continuing to pay rent.

The Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) said in a statement yesterday that the Government has initiated studies for the construction of a "modern financial tower", defined as a "mega project with first-world attractions" at the former headquarters of the U.S. embassy in Panama City.

The building will house at least seven public entities, in addition to local and multinational companies in the private sector.

The U.S. embassy, built in Panama City in 1938 overlooking the Pacific Ocean, moved its offices in 2007 to a building in the former U.S. military base, Clayton, along the banks of the Panama Canal, after the Government of President Martín Torrijos (2004-2009) granted these lands in exchange for its former headquarters on Avenida Balboa.

Minister of Economy and Finance, Alberto Vallarino, said the first tenants of the new financial tower will be: Banco Nacional de Panamá, Superintendencia de Bancos, Superintendencia de Seguros, Comisión Nacional de Valores, Autoridad de Turismo de Panamá, Secretaría de Energía, and the Autoridad de los Servicios Públicos.

With this building, the Government would be able to relocate a number of public entities from spaces they are currently renting, thus allowing for an estimated $40 million a year in savings, said Vallarino.

In this regard, the official stressed that at least one third of the space will be sold to the private sector so that the profits gained from those sales serve to offset the cost of the offices used by the public sector.

SOURCE: www.prensa.com