Additional Services now available

Many of our clients have asked for our advice and assistance with S.A. establishment, mobile phone applications, bank account opening in Costa Rica.

We are delighted to now offer the following services to our clients:

1. Sociedad Anónima or S.A. (the Costa Rican equivalent of a corporation or limited company) establishment
2. Bank Account set up
3. Getting a mobile phone in Costa Rica
4. Obtaining a Costa Rican Drivers License
5. Annual filings for your S.A.
6. Initial Annotations and Company Books for your S.A.

To see more visit our Costa Rica Invest's Additional Services Page

Costa Rica

Costa Rica wins prestigious Future Policy Award 2010

From The Costa Rica News

From the global summit on biodiversity in Nagoya, Japan , Costa Rica was announced as the winner of the 2010 Future Policy award.

The prize, issued by the World Future Council, in recognition of the country’s 1998 biodiversity law. The Central American country would like to be the first developing nation to meet UN biodiversity commitments.

Costa Rica funnels funds from a fuel tax, to pay for nature reserve management and environmental services like clean air and biodiversity protection.

Forest cover has risen from 24% in 1985 to close to 46% today because landowners are paid to preserve old-growth forests and to plant new trees.

Costa Rica ranks third in the global Environmental Performance index and first in the Happy Planet index.

Just this month, the country has also received nearly $56m in donation and debt write-offs, to expands in forest and marine conservation efforts.

To read the full story on The Costa Rica News click here

Costa Rica Investments in Bio-fuel, and Sustainable Agro Developments

The Costa Rica News 19th October 2010

TRCN staff

Central America and especially Costa Rica has seen a large surge in Biofuel initiative. There new Biofuel cooperative projects, intercropping (with food and oil bearing plants) development, including a new investment wave called Multi Purpose Real Estate, UBA (United Biofuels of America.

Investing in bio-fuel is profitable in the short term and long term and helps reduce dependency on unstable foreign sources.

Here in Costa Rica the governmental bodies have full buy-in to renewable energy and sustainable agro developments.

Costa Rica is attempting to produce ethanol and biodiesel on a large enough scale to eventually reduce or even replace petroleum fuel. The state oil company, Recope, is constructing a large processing plant, the government is about to release a plan for the industry’s development, and the Institute for Agrarian Development, is engaged in research projects for certain products to convert to biofuels.

At present, ethanol is produced from sugar cane and to a lesser extent from yuca (cassava), a root crop. There is some production of bio-diesel from African Palm oil. Research is ongoing with respect to very promising oil seed crops for biodiesel, higuerilla and jatropha.

There is ample opportunity for investments in these crops to supply a local and international market. Petroleum prices are expected to remain at high levels. Biofuels reduce vehicle emissions when mixed with or replace gasoline or diesel. However, when biofuels are produced on a large scale there are also large scale environmental and social consequences, especially when the source of ethanol is corn or soybeans for biodiesel or when growing crops that displace food crops or convert forests to crop lands.

These adverse environmental and social consequences are mitigated when biofuel crops are grown on land that had been previously deforested and converted to cattle pasture. In Northern Costa Rica there are vast expanses of unproductive cattle pasture, much of it mechanizable and not requiring irrigation. This is a good opportunity to promote the conversion of cattle lands to socially useful and productive crops. This is already occurring with the proliferation of pineapple, root crop, and palmito plantings. However, it makes good sense to plant many more food crops there, such as rice, beans, and animal feed, while still leaving space for biofuel crop cultivation.

Presently, there is a project that involves an effort to plant thousands of hectares of jatropha in Costa Rican and other countries. The oil from the seed is converted to diesel and no modification of diesel motors is required. Yield is high, production costs for the hardy plant are low, and demand is potentially infinite, including for aviation fuel. The company engaged in the project invites equity participation, as well as offering technical assistance and production contracts to growers.

An excellent investment for animal feed is in pejibaye, a palm nut fruit that is very high in protein and other nutrients. Research on pejibaye has demonstrated that it is superior to corn or other grains for animal feed, especially for poultry. The fruit is also very nutritious for human consumption, including for baby food. Pejibaye palm is very productive, much higher yield than grains, and has a low cost of production. Costa Rica spends hundreds of millions of dollars annually in importing grains for animal feed and development of this high yield crop would be an excellent import-substitution measure and help reduce the nation’s chronic balance of payment deficits. The export market for prepared chicken feed would also be excellent. To accomplish this on a large enough scale to make a difference will require the support of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Institute for Agrarian Development, and other government planning institutions.

With recent increases in food prices Costa Rican officials and the general public has become concerned about food sovereignty, that is the cost and availability of food imports. While Costa Rica is largely self-sufficient in fruits and vegetable, dairy products, and meat and fish, this is far from the case with the basic staples of the population’s diet, rice and beans. Domestic production accounts for less than half national consumption of these staples. Corn and other grains are almost entirely imported. There is ample land for mechanized cultivation of these crops, especially in the Northern Zone.

To read the full story go to The Costa Rica News 19th October 2010

Costa Rica to increase protected areas from 25% to 26% of its surface area

By MARIANELA JIMENEZ Associated Press Writer

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica—The Costa Rican government is receiving nearly $56 million in donations and debt write-offs to expand its forest and marine conservation programs and become the first developing country to meet U.N. goals on protected areas.

Costa Rica will use the funds to increase its protected tropical forests from 25 percent of its national territory—1.3 million hectares (3.2 million acres)—to 26 percent, said Zdenka Piskulich, the manager of the trust created with the funds.

The goal is to meet Costa Rica's commitments on environmental protection under the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity by 2015, Piskulich said Friday. If successful, Costa Rica would be the first developing country to fulfill those commitments.

The Central American country, known for its burgeoning eco-tourism industry, also hopes to triple the size of its protected territorial waters. Less than 0.1 percent of Costa Rica's waters are currently protected.

"The convention establishes that every ecosystem should be protected in good measure. Costa Rica is doing well with 25 percent of its land, but it has a great debt when it comes to marine areas," Piskulich said.

Under the plan, the U.S. agreed to buy back $27 million of Costa Rica's foreign debt, money that will be used instead to invest conservation programs. The U.S. already trimmed $26 million of Costa Rican debt in 2007 as part of the U.S. Tropical Forest Conservation Act. The debt now stands at $77 million.

With the aid and write-offs, Costa Rica will work "to turn what has been promise into reality," Environment Minister Teofilo de la Torre said.

Under the act, the U.S. has provided $135 million in aid to 11 countries since 1998, including Panama, El Salvador, the Philippines and Bangladesh.

"Costa Rica is a global leader in conservation and this agreement today is an important investment to continue the expansion and protection of the incredible biodiversity found in Costa Rican forests," U.S. Ambassador Anne Andrew said.

Costa Rica is receiving another $19.9 million from private organizations including the Linden Trust for Conservation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation. Another $9 million is coming from The Nature Conservancy, an international non-govermental organization.

"In our case, we identified areas in Costa Rica that are worth permanently conserving, and we saw a government and a society committed to their conservation," said Roger Ullman, executive director for the Linden Trust for Conservation.

The sites that will benefit from the initiative, called "Costa Rica Forever," include the Cocos Island National Park, Corcovado National Park and the Golfo Dulce and Pacific areas such as the Barra del Colorado and Gandoca shelter, on the Atlantic coast.

To read the full original story in the Santa Cruz Sentinel, By MARIANELA JIMENEZ Associated Press Writer, click here

Reforestation Program begins in NatureWalk

Diego Camacho, Forestry Consultant & John Bryant, Director of Conservancy

in NatureWalk, discuss the reforestation program

For every lot sold in NatureWalk, PRG group have committed to plant 600 trees between on and offsite locations.

The reforestation scheme has now started.

1,000 seedlings are currently being planted in a seedling nursery and the planting of the seedlings has commenced within the Finca.

Diego Camacho Forestry Consultant examines one of the teak seedlings

John Bryant director of the NatureWalk Conservancy project and Diego Camacho, Forestry Consultant will oversee the program which will ensure that the ecological integrity and sustainability of NatureWalk is maintained throughout its development

Alberto, head of forestry maintenance in NatureWalk and
manager of the nursery planting seedlings in NatureWalk

NatureWalk Conservancy Project Begins

NatureWalk is committed to developing on an ecological and sustainable basis. A part of that commitment is the reforestation and tree planting to be carried out. 600 trees will be planted both on and offsite for every development lot sold in NatureWalk.




John Bryant is the director of Conservancy and Diego Commancho is the forestry engineer.

Extreme Homes in Costa Rica

Costa Rica is the home of some of the mst eco friendly sustainable homes in the world. Have a look at the video below to see just one of these incredible homes.




To see a fantastic Eco-friendly sustainable village in Costa Rica on ABC News click here:

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