Weil Gotshal & Manges is advising a BlackRock-led investor group on its $22.8 billion agreement to buy a majority stake in Hong Kong's CK Hutchison, which runs ports along either side of the Panama Canal, Bloomberg has reported.

Bloomberg added that the sellers are being advised by Paul Hastings, noting that it marks a shift for CK Hutchison as the Hong Kong conglomerate has previously worked on many of its deals with law firms such as Freshfields and Linklaters. 

According to Reuters, the sale by CK Hutchison to U.S. and Swiss investors also includes dozens of ports in other countries, and gives the buyers control of key docks amid pressure from the White House to take them from China.

Reuters added that the U.S. president has complained about the presence of Chinese and Hong Kong-based companies in Panama, and American officials and politicians have said CK Hutchison's control of the ports represents a security risk for the operation.

The sale of licenses will result in the consortium gaining a 90 percent stake in Panama Ports Company, which has been the operator of the Balboa and Cristobal ports in the Central American country for more than two decades, Reuters referenced a CK Hutchison statement as saying.