With the change of government, the Nation will know a list of eleven megaprojects that are part of the second wave of the Fifth Generation (5G) concession plan, and with which it maintains its commitment to strengthen road infrastructure.
This package of great works of the so-called Bicentennial Concessions, which will be known in a matter of weeks and which have planned investments that in total exceed $30 billion, are added to the 14 megaprojects of the first wave for which resources have been calculated for $21.79 billion.
The list of initiatives will be made public following the National Infrastructure Agency (ANI) finishes adjusting the studies and planning of each of the mega-projects, and which are part of the structuring phase.
“With this new generation of concessions, we seek to connect not only transportation, but also improve the lives of citizens. The projects that are being structured are closer to the communities,” said Manuel Felipe Gutiérrez, director of the ANI.
The package of the second wave of 5G mega-projects is made up of the dual carriageways Villeta – Guaduas, Calarcá – La Paila, Popayán – Pasto, Zipaquirá – Barbosa (Santander), Barbosa (Antioquia) – Bucaramanga, Sogamoso – Aguazul, Santuario – Caño Alegre , Duitama – Pamplona and Ocaña – Cúcuta.
“These concessions include road, airport and port projects which, by their nature, are aimed at promoting better infrastructure in the various modes of transportation (land, air and river)”, explained Cristina Vásquez, infrastructure partner at Posse Herrera Ruiz .
The expert specified that unlike the first wave of 5G, the second wave brings in its favor the fact that they will allow more efficient connections as they are multimodal projects that combine and connect the regions through various transport systems, “which they are committed to ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) standards and comply with the planning principle so that they present fewer difficulties during their execution”.
In addition to the nine 5G double lane road concession megaprojects, the dredging of the port of Buenaventura and the modernization of the Puerto Antioquia maritime terminal in Turbo are also part of the second wave list.
“It is estimated that the investment in the 5G infrastructure program will be equivalent to 1.67% of GDP, and with the two waves the ANI and the Ministry of Transportation seek to mitigate some risks or inefficiencies presented during the development of the 4G concessions so that the projects are more attractive”, highlighted María Lucía Amador, associate and director of the Infrastructure Area of the firm Mendoza.
And he stressed that an important advance for this second wave of 5G and that will allow the development of multimodality “is the regulation of functional units in public-private partnership (PPP) projects for waterways and railways, since it will facilitate not only the structuring of these projects but their financing.
The analysts consulted agreed that, in projects of this magnitude, it is important to have a vision that goes beyond the traditional scheme, and that provides the best alternatives for the project to come to a successful conclusion, where mechanisms such as sustainable credits or bonds can be essential.
