Panaman Vice President Juan Carlos Varela has announced plans to build a third bridge over the Panama Canal, with an estimated value of around US$300 million, website Prensalibre.com reported.

The story reported the bridge in the Atlantic zone would connect the province and duty-free zone Colón to Panama City.

"This will be very important because it opens access to many remote communities (in Colón) so they can be in the city (capital) in a matter of minutes or connect to the rest of the province," Varela was quoted as saying.

The government will put the project out to tender for the next three months, the story reported.

The country's last bridge was built during the presidency of Mireya Moscoso (1999-2004), while before that the only connection across the canal was the Bridge of the Americas, built in 1962.

Both bridges are on the Pacific side of the country.

Source: www.freshfruitportal.com