[5] Construction of a canal using the San Juan River as an access route to Lake Nicaragua was first proposed in the early colonial era.

[13] In 2015, media reports suggested the project would be delayed and possibly cancelled because Wang's personal wealth declined greatly as a result of the 2015–16 Chinese stock market crash.

[5][14] "Major works" such as dredging were to take place after the finishing of a Pacific Ocean wharf, whose construction was planned to start in late 2016.

[23] Until the beginning of the 20th century, before the opening of the Panama Canal, Nicaragua used to be the main overland trade route and hub of transshipment of goods between ocean-going vessels on the Atlantic side and those on the Pacific.

[28] The Nicaraguan government subsequently approved the Master Concession Agreement with HKND on 13 June 2013 thereby granting "the sole rights to the HKND Group to plan, design, construct and thereafter to operate and manage the Nicaragua Grand Canal and other related projects, including ports, a free trade zone, an international airport and other infrastructure development projects".

[32] The HKND Group performed a preliminary study phase of development to assess the technological and economic feasibility of constructing a canal in Nicaragua, as well as the potential environmental, social, and regional implications of various routes.

[34] On 10 June 2013, The Associated Press reported that the National Assembly's Infrastructure Committee voted nearly unanimously in favor of the project, with four members abstaining.

"[38] Under the exclusive contract, Wang could skip building the canal (and making any payments to Nicaragua) and instead simply operate lucrative tax-free side projects.

The Toronto Star noted that Chinese engineer Dong Yung Song said the canal's design called for the creation of a 400-square-kilometre (150 sq mi) artificial lake.

[46] The Moscow Times reported in 2014 that Russia was willing to help build the Nicaragua Canal, viewing the project in part as an opportunity to pursue strategic interests in the region.

[52] By November 2016, the president of the canal commission, Manual Coronel Kautz said "According to our schedule, we should initiate major works by the end of the year."

However, Carlos Fernando Chamorro, editor of the Confidencial newspaper, said "If the People's Republic of China does not step forward, it won't happen.

"[53] Following financial difficulties, HKND finally closed its headquarters offices in China in April 2018, leaving no forwarding address or telephone numbers to be reached.

[58] Activists noted that the canal contract established that it must be dissolved in 72 months, if the investor has not obtained the money to start the project; that deadline was 14 June 2019, so they assert that the Law 840 must be repealed.

[45] HKND has been granted the right to expropriate land within 5 km (3.1 mi) on each side of the canal and pay only cadastral value, not market value, for property.

[61] Thus, according to an activist leader, an unrest in Rivas in December 2014, in opposition to the canal, left two protesters dead, although no evidence was ever produced to justify his claim.

[64] Investor Wang had financial setbacks unrelated to the Nicaragua project, losing 80% of his net worth during the 2015–16 Chinese stock market turbulence.

"[19] In September 2017 Agence France-Presse reported that the work had been "pushed back indefinitely," although the government renewed the project's environmental permit in April 2017.

Following financial difficulties, HKND finally closed its offices in April 2018, leaving no forwarding address or telephone numbers to be reached.

A free trade zone with commercial facilities as well as tourist hotels and an international airport at Rivas were planned to be built when canal construction was advanced.

On 2 September 2015, Pang Wai Kwok (executive VP of HKND Group) was interviewed by Nicaraguan journalist Carlos Solis and said up to 3,000 people might be employed on the canal project within the year.

[82] The economic development potential for the canal project is relatively measurable with Panama; however, the World Bank describes the country of Nicaragua as the second poorest in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Nicaraguan Academy of Sciences noted that hundreds of thousands of hectares of pristine forests and wetlands would be destroyed and pointed out that the environmental study performed for the canal was not independent.

[95] Falling in line with ecotourism, Nicaragua's Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources has promoted formal workshops at each level of education (primary, secondary, and post-secondary); however, there is no curriculum relevant to the pending canal project.

[40][100] Also, North American overland shipping through Pacific ports in Mexico and the United States will compete in the traffic between Asia and the U.S. east coast.

[32] On the other hand, the combined effect of climate change and poor water-management of the 2016 Panama Canal expansion has resulted in severe bottlenecks which are expected to be exacerbated by future drought conditions.

With better water management, and the ability to accommodate dramatically larger vessels, the Nicaragua Canal could supplant other freight options over the next 50 years.

The canal would affect neighboring economies, like Honduras and El Salvador, as they are part of the commercial treaty known as the Northern Triangle of Central America (Triángulo Norte de Centroamérica).

[101][102] The GDP of each nation would be influenced by expanded export / import operations and trade cooperation through agencies like the promotion authority in El Salvador.

[64] However, according to human rights group Amnesty International it would "forcibly displace an estimated 120,000 people, including Rama and Creole communities, from protected indigenous territories on the Caribbean coast."