Government of São Paulo prepares package of concessions
O Estado de S. Paulo
The government of the State of São Paulo plans to initiate, in the next months, a billionaire program for road concessions. The package, whose investment exceeds R$ 13 billion (US$ 6.8 billion), includes the Mogi-Bertioga, Tamoios, Oswaldo Cruz, Rio-Santos, and Padre Manoel da Nóbrega highways and the southern, eastern and northern segments of the beltway (Rodoanel). The most advanced process is the one of the highways connected to the coast of São Paulo. The expectation is that the bidding be held still this year, pointed out the Secretary of Transports of the State, Mauro Arce.
The highways will be divided into two lots: North and South. In the case of the North lot, the Government chose the PPP version. The bid winner will manage nearly 550 kilometers (km) of the Mogi-Bertioga, Tamoios, Oswaldo Cruz, Rio-Santos highways and of the Floriano Rodrigues Pinheiro highway, which gives access to Campos do Jordão. According to Mauro Arce, this lot will require investments of nearly R$ 4.7 billion (US$ 2.5 billion), R$ 1.7 billion (US$ 894.7 million) of which will come from the treasury of the state government.
In the case of the South Lot, the government chose for a simple concession. But, unlike what happened at the last State bidding, in October last year, there will be no grant (value paid by the concessionaire for the right to operate the road). They are 46 km of roads between Praia Grande and Miracatu. The winner will be the one which accepts to receive the lesser toll rate and makes an investment of R$ 650 million (US$ 342.1 million).
To complete the package, the State Government prepares the model of concession of the southern, eastern and northern segments of the beltway. Arce believes it is possible to conclude the model until December. The segments should be transferred to the private initiative by simple concessions. The secretary explained the government studies the possibility of granting the concessions of the southern, eastern and northern segments to one single winner. That is, the company or consortium would be responsible for the construction of the remaining part of the undertaking until 2014. The total investment is of nearly R$ 8 billion (US$ 4.2 billion). But there are those who foresee amounts of up to R$ 12 billion (USS$ 6.3 billion) for both the segments.