Panama Investor Blog

Why no one invades Switzerland

The assembly of Panama is currently working on a bill to restrict gun ownership in response to the growing crime wave by drug gangs. Somehow they think that by restricting citizens from owning guns is going to keep the bad guys from getting them. This wrong headed approach is similar to that of many states in the U.S. even though studies clearly show that when citizens are not allowed to have weapons crime increases. The fact is that the bad guys will always find a way to get illegal weapons and will pray upon the unarmed populace.

Switzerland has long had the proper solution where every able bodied man is required to have a weapon in order to defend the country should it come under attack. The state provides the weapon and even trains the citizens on the proper use of these weapons and provides ammunition for practice. Check out this video.

Panama copper mine project submits 15,000 page environmental study

Contrary to what many believe, the recent changes in the law did not do away with the need for environmental impact studies for mining operations. What it did do is to prevent environmental activists from holding up project with court actions when the project is of state interest. The Inmet mining company is the major player in the development of what is believed to be one of the largest copper deposits in the world. It really is a game changer for Panama who up until this major discovery had very little exportable resources. Lets hope that they will comply with the environmental regulations and do as little harm to the country as possible. There is no doubt that there will be negative effects from this kind of exploitation, but if it is balanced against the benefits it can bring to Panama it should be more than worth it. To those who say that the mine will leave huge scars on the land, I can only reply that so do meteorites.

Inmet Mining Announces Submission of the Cobre Panama Environmental and Social Impact Assessment to the Panamanian Environmental Regulatory Authority

TORONTO, ONTARIO, Oct 04, 2010 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Inmet Mining Corporation ("Inmet") /quotes/comstock/11t!e:imn (CA:IMN 58.72, +1.90, +3.34%) announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Minera Panama S.A. (MPSA), has submitted the environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) for the Cobre Panama copper project to the Autoridad Nacional del Ambiente (ANAM), the Panamanian environmental regulatory authority. The submittal of the ESIA is a significant milestone in the development of the project.

The ESIA was prepared by Golder Associates and describes the existing socio-environmental conditions in the project area, the likely impacts and benefits that will result from the project and the commitments that MPSA will undertake to minimize such impacts and enhance such benefits. It represents one of the most intensive studies ever undertaken of the socio-environmental context of the Atlantic slope of Panama. During the past 42 months, more than 40,000 person-hours of field time were recorded, involving more than 100 Panamanian and international experts in the preparation of the document. Three rounds of public consultation were undertaken in local communities. The ESIA document consists of 14,913 pages in 40 volumes.

The ESIA technical Executive Summary (in English and Spanish) and a plain language ESIA summary (in English) are available on Inmet's website (www.inmetmining.com). Electronic copies of the entire ESIA document (in English and Spanish) will be available on request by October 31.

President Martinelli on Fox News-a must see!

This is a great video with the president. With Panama's economic numbers looking so good, Cavuto asks him what he is doing right and what advise he would give to Obama. Great answers. I think this under 5 minute video will do more to put Panama in the minds of Americans than anything done before.