Canadian mining company starts arbitration in case of closed copper mine in Panama

Canada's First Quantum Minerals Ltd. has announced it will start arbitration proceedings to fight the closure order of an open-pit copper mine in Panama, or possibly obtain damages. First Quantum says one arbitration was filed under the Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement. It says it has also started proceedings before the International Court of Arbitration, which would meet in Miami, Florida. In a historic ruling, Panama’s Supreme Court this week declared that legislation granting the mine a 20-year concession was unconstitutional. That decision was celebrated by thousands of Panamanians activists who had argued the project would damage a forested coastal area and threaten water supplies.