"Why this Canadian-owned copper mine is facing fierce opposition in Panama​​", 27 October 2023

...The recent renewal of a contract for a Canadian-owned copper mine deep in the Panamanian rainforest has tested the limits of the Central American nation’s sovereignty, and triggered widespread protests.

Cobre Panamá – the country’s only active mine – has been operating in a 12-hectare area of jungle within a protected park in the coastal Donoso region, digging up 1.5% of the world’s copper. The contract has come under intense scrutiny because of the unprecedented legal powers it was slated to grant to its owner, Vancouver-headquartered First Quantum Minerals, for a mine already plagued by environmental concerns. With demand for copper booming amid the global energy transition, the government of Panama has pinned its hopes on expanding its mining sector...

...In September, following heavy protests in front of the National Assembly in Panama City and under threat of a lawsuit from the Panamanian Association of Constitutional Law, the government went back to negotiations with First Quantum and removed controversial clauses related to airspace rights and forced expropriation. The new contract was approved by the Congress and signed off by the president on October 20. Protests have since expanded throughout the country, resulting in violent crackdowns by police...

The mine’s first contract was signed in 1997 under then-owner Petaquilla Gold and was declared unconstitutional in 2017 by the Supreme Court. First Quantum acquired the mine in 2013.  But even without a contract, operations have continued...

The hermetic negotiations between Panama’s government and First Quantum have been criticized for their lack of transparency...

An online public consultation was held in April, but participants had to make a decision about the 55-page contract on the spot...