A work stoppage that paralyzed the $5.2-billion Panama Canal Third Lane Expansion for more than two weeks has ended, with a tentative agreement reached Feb. 19 between the contractor and owner battling over alleged cost overruns.

巴拿马运河管理局在一份声明中说：“恢复工作的初步协议并不意味着就承包商声称的所谓成本超支而进行谈判。”

2月20日，两边都没有透露有多少工人返回工作以及项目的哪个领域。

在与巴拿马运河管理局进行了数周的谈判之后，承包商团队建造了水道的新锁，承包商团队Grupo Unidos Por El Canal（GUPC）停止了工作。

运河官员坚持认为，索赔必须经过2009年合同中商定的三步仲裁程序。

所有者和承包商小组原则上就该问题就达成了一项协议，但仍在继续就细节进行谈判。当局同意向承包商支付3680万美元的12月发票，以确保工作能够继续前进。

The two sides will continue to discuss key points such as the delivery of the massive gates for the locks, several of which are completed and waiting for transit from Italy.

While the financial details of the agreement have not been disclosed, canal Administrator Jorge Quijano said that any agreement was incumbent on the cooperation of Zurich Insurance Group who also participated in the negotiations to find a solution to the crisis.

The Swiss insurance company holds a $400-million performance bond for the locks work issued at the beginning of work on that portion of the project.

Quijano said that if an agreement with GUPC was not reached, the agency was prepared to take over the job and complete the project by the end of next year. Currently, the canal expansion is 72% complete and the locks are 65% complete.

GUPC, composed of Spain’s Sacyr Vallehermoso S.A., Italy’s Impregilo S.p.A., the Netherlands' Jan De Nul n.v. and Constructora Urbana, S.A. of Panama, won the design-build contract for the locks work in July 2009.

该财团的31.2亿美元出价是唯一低于ACP分配的成本34.8亿美元的竞标。