Finance & Funding

The UK output of construction equipment and parts has continued on an encouraging upward trend in February. This is according to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) data, with the information being released by the Construction Equipment Association (CEA). Output in February was 1.2% higher than January, and 9.7% up on February 2016 levels, which was the weakest month last year. Output levels in February were the highest for nearly two years (since April 2015), and the 6 month moving average has

Road projects in Brazil could see extended deadlines. This move follows on from the impeachment of the former president. Several roads were privatised under the previous administration, with widening and general upgrade works having been required as integral components of the concession packages. The agreements settled with the former administration called for the road widening and improvement works to be carried out in a five year period. But these five year deadlines may be amended once comprehensive revi

A new four lane road and tunnel connection is to be built in the Sri Lankan city of Kandy. The tunnel section will measure a total of 4.4km while the project also includes 1.2km of connecting roads. The project is costing over US$252 million to construct of which just over $199 million will be supplied by the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) from South Korea.

Work is commencing ion a major new highway project in Côte d'Ivoire.

The Estonian capital Tallinn, announced that Nordecon is the winner in the €19.8 million tender for reconstruction of the Haabersti road intersection. As part of the reconstruction, two tunnels - 38m and 54m – will be built for cyclists and pedestrians. Phase one of the project includes a 277m-long road bridge in the direction of Paldiski Road and phase two will construction of a roundabout with traffic lights. The project is co-financed by the EU Cohesion Fund and completion is set for October 201

Latvia’s capital Riga will invest around €280,000 to upgrade pedestrian crossings and another €400,000 in better traffic lights. The aim is to improve visibility and vehicle flow at pedestrian crossings because of concerns over the number of accidents, some of them fatal to children. According to local media, police reported 65 traffic accidents at crossings last year. Three were fatal and ten of the accidents seriously injured children. So far this year, 16 such traffic accidents have been registered

Poor road conditions present a major hazard to drivers in the Australian state of Victoria. Research by Australian motoring club, RACV, of data from VicRoads shows that 1,452km of the regional road network, around 7.4% of the system, is in a distressed state. The RACV is urging Victoria’s State Government to boost its road repair budget for 2017 to US$229 million (A$300 million) and begin tackling the problem. In all $916 million will be required to address the state’s road repair problem as long as work st

Russian road project construction tenders faced a series of serious problems in 2016. Around 30% of the tenders planned in 2016 actually fell through, according to the road agency FAS. The tenders were worth some US$4.78 billion. However the FAS intends to ensure that the majority of the road project tenders for the 2017-2019 period go through. The FAS is also intent on tackling cartels operating in the road construction sector and introduce fair competition to the industry.

Caterpillar is closing its factories in Aurora Illinois and at Gosselies in Belgium, with the loss of around 3,000 jobs in all. The Aurora facility makes wheeled loaders, with production being switched over to facilities at Decatur, also in Illinois, as well as North Little Rock in Arkansas. This will result in the loss of 800 jobs at the Aurora plant although there will be more personnel required at the Decatur and North Little Rock facilities that will offset the losses Meanwhile the firm says that the

Argentina looks set to benefit from a series of major new transport projects. Loans worth up to US$650 million will help pay for a series of projects, including Argentina’s contribution to the Agua Negra Tunnel link with neighbouring Chile. The loans will be organised by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). A further loan of $156 million to road concession company AUSA will help pay for transport projects in Buenos Aires, including the construction of the Lacarra Bridge to connect with Lanus and upgr