Mulino said that he was open to direct dialogue about Central America's biggest copper mine, which has been ordered to close -- but only without international arbitration.
The company is seeking $20 billion in compensation for the closure of the Cobre Panama mine, whose environmental impact was the focus of nationwide protests and roadblocks last year.
"Don't forget that the government is the owner of that concession," Mulino said in an interview with ArCa Media En Directo radio.
"On that basis we can talk about opening or closing" the mine definitively, added the 64-year-old, who is the protege of a former president convicted of corruption.
However, "I am not going to accept to talk about a mine with these active arbitrations," added Mulino, who is due to take office on July 1.
There was no immediate comment from the Canadian company, which has previously said that it would prefer to resolve the situation without arbitration.
Congress approved a law in October allowing First Quantum Minerals to operate the Cobre Panama mine for 20 years, with an option to extend for another two decades.
The following month, the Supreme Court ruled that the contract was unconstitutional, and the government said that it would close the mine.
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