The Gran Canal Interoceánico will cross the country from east to west, with a total length of 278km, including a stretch of 105km across Lake Cocibolca. It will be between 230m and 530m wide and between 26.7m and 30m deep.
Yunsong Dong, chief engineer of Chinese concessionaire HKND, said that the project will require the hiring of more than 50,000 workers during the construction phase and will generate more than 200,000 thousand jobs during operation.
Six sub-projects will make up the overall project. The first is the 278km canal – chosen from six possible routes - and the second involves the construction of ports on each side of the Canal, the Pacific and the Caribbean. The others are a free trade zone, a resort, an airport and road building.
The aim is to finish work in 2019 and for the canal to enter service in 2020.
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