Panama Ports Company S. A. A member of the Hutchison Port Holdings Group Port of Balboa Bldg. 39, Arnulfo Arias Madrid Ave. Balboa, Ancon, Panama Republic of Panama Tel: (507) 232-6025 Fax: (507) 232-6583

Contact: Rommel Troetsch G.
Telephone: (507) 232-6025
Fax: (507) 232-6583

[Panama - May 3rd 2001] Panama Ports Company, S.A. (PPC) announces the acquisition of seven Rubber Tyred Gantry Cranes (RTG's) for the Port of Balboa Container Terminal.

The new cranes, manufactured by Noel Crane Systems GmbH from Germany, will be capable of stacking containers one over five high and will straddle six rows of containers plus a roadway. The Balboa Container yard will be serviced by a total of sixteen RTG's.

The seven new RTG's will be delivered in August 2001. The 8 wheel machines are fitted with AC drive engineering supplied by Noell based on Siemens inverters. They will be powered by Cummins diesel engines.

Commenting on the order Alejandro Kouruklis, General Manager of Panama Ports Company, S.A., said:

"These new container yard cranes will significantly increase the Port of Balboa's capacity and efficiency and will enable us to meet the requirements of our customers. We are also ordering this equipment to be in a position to handle further increases in traffic in the coming years."

NOTE TO EDITORS

Panama Ports Company (PPC) operates the Ports of Balboa and Cristobal located at each end of the Panama Canal. Serving as major hubs for the Atlantic and Pacific trade routes, the Ports are equipped with comprehensive facilities for handling containers, general cargo, bulk cargo and passenger vessels.

PPC is a member of Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) an independent port investor, developer and operator with operations in 19 ports in Asia, Europe and the Americas.