Finance & Funding

Mexican construction company Empresas ICA has entered a partnership with Canadian investment company CDPQ to carry out joint road projects in Mexico. Under the arrangement, subject to Mexican government approval, ICA holds a 51% interest in the partnership and CDPQ will pay US$197.17 million to ICA for its 49% equity share of the new business. The companies are planning four projects: the Mayab motorway, the Rio-Verde-Ciudad Valles motorway, the La Piedad bypass and the Acapulco tunnel. ICA carries

Work will start on the 120km Sibiu-Pitesti section of Romania’s A1 Freeway in 2017, Romanian media report. Around €1.6 billion will be spent on the route that will run through 20km of mountains. In February, the National Highway and Roads Company, CNADNR, selected the Milan-based Spea Ingineria Europea and Tecnic Consulting Engineering of Romania to update the feasibility study on the section, which is part of Romania’s A1 Freeway. But that contract has been challenged and will be scrutinised by th

The Ministry of Land Transport in Venezuela has announced expansion plans for the Valle-Coche motorway in Caracas that will include the largest viaduct in Venezuela. The project, worth nearly US$200million, will involve work on 7km of road, an elevated section over the BusCaracas Los Ilustres bus station, bridges alongside the El Pulpo interchange, as well as another bridge over El Valle River. Bridges over the interchange will have four lanes in each direction and a fourth lane will be added to the r

In Ethiopia, three road projects worth over US$240 million will be built as part of the country's fourth road sector development plan. The government will fund the projects using its own resources. The first project is the 83km Sodo-Tercha asphalt-concrete project, costing around $84 million and to be built by China Railway Seventh Group. Completion is scheduled for 19 months. The second project, worth $102 million is the 99km Bilbela-Sekota road project, scheduled to take 39 months and to be built

The Canadian government has awarded a multi-billion dollar contract for the Champlain Bridge in Montreal, in the province of Quebec, to a consortium led by SNC-Lavalin. The firm, based in Montreal, will design, build, maintain and operate the toll bridge under a 35-year public-private partnership deal worth between US$2.5-$4.1 billion. The consortium called Signature on the Saint-Lawrence Group includes Spanish firms Dragados Canada and ACS Infrastructures and the US firm Flatiron Construction. Other

The French Government is announcing a series of key investments for highways in Ile-de-France. The €810 million programme will target updates to highways and expressways not currently covered by concessions in Ile-de-France. The aim of the policy is to boost mobility, improve traffic flow, cut noise pollution and to provide reserved lanes for buses and taxis. The financing of this programme will come from the State-region plan.

A new road company is being established in Norway. The country’s government made the decision to form the new firm, which will be responsible for seven major road projects in Norway in the coming 20 years. It will be financed by government subsidies and road tolls. Some €15.35 billion will be used by the company. Planned projects include different sections on the E39, E18 and E6 roads. The Norwegian Standing Committee on Transport and Communications (Transport- og kommunikasjonskomiteen) said that the new c