Finance & Funding

Authorities in Vietnam’s southern Ho Chi Minh City are seeking prime ministerial approval for the nearly 2.2km-long Thu Thiêm Bridge 4 project. The six-lane bridge will cost more than US$230 million and be a build-transfer contract, according to a report in the Vietnam Investment Review. In September, Ho Chi Minh’s City’s People’s Committee said it is considering three investors for the work - Phát Đạt Corporation Real Estate Development, Investment Corporation 620 and 168 Construction Development Investmen

The first stage of the 3.3km Escenica Alterna Tunnel in Acapulco was opened this month. The three-lane tunnel – one is reversible – is costing around US$62 million and will improve connections between coastal areas and Diamante zone, as well as access to Acapulco International Airport. Gerardo Ruiz Esparza, Secretary of Communication and Transport, said that the project would be concluded in June with construction of Cayaco-Diamante elevated road. The project is funded by the National Infrastructure F

Pakistan is planning a massive investment in transport development projects. The country has set a budget of US$1 billion for vital road projects, which have gained approval from Pakistan’s federal Government. The three road infrastructure projects form part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). These include a $183 million road link stretching 110km between Basima and Khuzdar, a 210km dual carriageway between Yarik and Zhob costing $725.7 million and a $76.3 million road stretching 280km from Rai

China’s Fujian Province is increasing its transport development budget. The authorities in Fujian Province have set a budget of US$13.07 billion for transport development. The projects will include improvements in rural infrastructure, transport services, passenger interchange facilities, port projects, road construction, interstate projects and expressway projects.

Plans are now going ahead in Slovakia for a key stretch of the D1 highway project. This 8km Presov West-Presov South section will cost €356 million to construct. The project will be carried out by the D1 Presov Consortium. The project partners in the consortium comprise Eurovia SK, Eurovia CS, Doprastav, Metrostav and Metrostav Slovakia. The agreement with the consortium was reached with Slovakia's National Highway Company (NDS), which awarded the package of works. Construction will commence in June 2017 an

China’s Qinghai Province is setting out plans for major improvements to its road network. The authorities in Qinghai Province have set out a budget of US$28.97 billion for a series of road upgrades to improve the network, which will be carried out over the next five years. The province has already embarked on a series of road upgrades and by 2020, the aim is to boost the road network by 10,000km. The roads will feature concrete construction and the plan is to connect every township and village to the networ

Ringway, part of Eurovia UK, won the Highways England southwest area Maintenance and response contract. The 15-year term starts 1 July and is worth between nearly €18-35 million a year. Ringway will be responsible for maintenance of 1,695km of strategic road network within the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire. This includes all cyclic maintenance, reactive maintenance, incident response, severe weather response and associated traffic management. “This is

Work on the new North-South Highway in Vietnam is now underway, with preparatory work having commenced in 2016 and construction scheduled for completion in 2020. The project is being carried out under the PPP model, with initial funding being provided by a system of Government Bonds. The project is expected to cost US$2.43 billion to complete. The tender process for the design phase of the project is now opening, while a pre-feasibility study has yet to be carried out. The project is being overseen by Vietn

Funding worth €155 million will be required for a new bridge project for Montenegro. The project is for the construction of the Verige Bridge, which will provide a new link at the Bay of Kotor. The bridge will connect with Tivat Airport and is also intended to form a section of the Adriatic Highway, which is part of the E65 Trans-European route. Some of the funding for the project will be provided by state-owned road firm Monteput. However the Montenegro Government has yet to source the remainder of the fun

The cost of a major highway project being carried out in Bangladesh has been reduced significantly. The 192km highway connecting capital Dhaka with Chittagong will now cost US$427.8 million, instead of the $$475.1 million originally expected. Reductions in the costs of materials have helped lower the overall pricetag for the project, while the fact that the work has remained within schedule means there has been no need for the contingency funds that were forecast. The highway is expected to open to traffic