Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said on June 5th, 2013, a concession to build an inter-oceanic canal across his Central American nation was awarded to an unnamed Chinese consortium based in Hong Kong. The project includes a conventional canal, a "dry canal" -- a rail line -- as well as two airports and an oil pipeline to move petroleum from the Caribbean to the Pacific.

The estimated cost of the project is $40 billion. Work on the canal should begin in May 2014. However, a feasibility study hasn't been completed.

Local sources sais that Mr. Ortega will send to the National Assembly a bill that would set the legal framework for building the canal. Opposition lawmaker Eliseo Nunez said the bill "would give a 100 year concession, like that given to the United States (to build and operate the Panama Canal), and that the Chinese were going to build the canal, which would cost $40 billion."

In the Wednesday announcement he mentioned no names, but did say the concession was given to a consortium based in Hong Kong and formed by Chinese companies.

Chinese companies will probably bring financing for the project that in other case it would be difficult to find.