The concessionaire has closed its financing from banks so as to cover 82% of the investment in a record time of just three months.
Iridium (ACS Group) and Acciona have signed an agreement in Canada with the Quebec Ministry of Transport to design, build, operate and maintain the A30 Châteauguay-Vaudreil-Dorion highway, which is to become a key corridor for communications between Quebec and Montreal. The investment for the project is 1.5 billion Canadian dollars (some 1 billion euros) and the concession period is 35 years.
The concessionaire, called Nouvelle Autoroute 30, of which a 50% share is held by Acciona and Iridium, will operate the highway for a period of 35 years. The highway, 42 km long (35 km from Vaudreuil-Dorion to Châteauguay plus 7 km for the link to Salaberry-de-Valleyfield) and with two lanes in each direction, is to be built by Acciona Infraestructuras (42%), Dragados (42%) and DJL (16%). The works include the building of two bridges, one of 1860 m over the St. Lawrence River and another of 2550 m over the Beauhamois canal, as well as overpasses and underpasses and a 72 m tunnel under the Soulanges canal. The contract also includes the operation, maintenance and upgrading of 32 km from Châteauguay to Candiac as from 2012.
In just three months the concessionaire has reached financial close for this project. Accordingly 82% of the total investment will be financed by Spanish, European and US banks, with the involvement of Banesto, BBVA, Caja Madrid, La Caixa, ICO and Royal Bank of Canada (as Primary Mandated Lead Arrangers, and Book Runners, ?PMLAs?), and Banco Espirito Santo, Bank of Nova Scotia, Dekabank Deutsche Girozentrale, HBOS, Banco Popular, Société Générale and Bayerische Hypo-Und Vereinsbank as Mandated Lead Arrangers, ?MLAs?.
This bank financing of 1.1 billion Canadian dollars is structured in a 30-year loan of 810 million and a 5-year credit of 290 million.
According to the Quebec government, this public-private partnership for infrastructure development will involve a considerable saving for the public purse, as compared to the cost of a conventional project, and will generate 18,900 direct and indirect jobs during the execution of the works. The A30 will also contribute to the creation of some 450 extra jobs per year in the nearby industry parks.
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