Contractors competing Colombian construction concessions

The tender process is underway for the third section of Colombia’s Pacific route connecting La Pintada and La Felisa. This route forms part of the Autopistas de la Prosperidad project between Medellin and Buenaventura. The 231km section includes 26 bridges and three tunnels and will cost some US$621.4 million to construct. All three sections plus the Magdalena and Norte highway will be awarded by July 2014 with works due to begin in 2015. The highway stretches should all be finished in 2020. For the first section of the Pacific route, the bidders were Autopistas Conexion Pacifico 1 (Episol and other firms) and Infraestructura Vial para Colombia. For the second section of the same route, there was only one bidder, PSF Concesion La Pintada. Meanwhile Mincivil and Colpatria have submitted Colombia's first private road project to the Ministry of Finance for its approval. The project consists of a double-lane road between Ibague and Cajamarca that will cost $684.6 million and the project will not require any public funding.