Panama invites bids for bridge, metro construction

Panama is inviting bids for two construction projects – a bridge and a monorail metro - which will connect Panama City with several suburbs, located on the western side of the canal.

The bridge will carry six lanes of vehicle traffic, as well the tracks for what would be the city’s third metro line, running from Allbrook Mall near the downtown area to La Chorrera, with stops at the Panama Pacific Special Economic Zone, Arraijan, and Ciudad del Futuro (Future City), among others.

Goldman Sachs has been chosen to arrange financing on a non-recourse basis for the bridge project, which has a projected cost of $1.2 billion.

In relation to the metro, part of the financing for the metro line will come from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which last year agreed to lend $266 million for a term of 20 years, at a preferential rate of 1.05% under Yen Libor, on the condition that Panama buy rolling stock from a Japanese manufacturer.

There is no restriction on bidders for the construction phase of the project, which is budgeted for $2.7 billion.

The third phase of the metro, covering a distance of 27 kilometers and serving 14 stations is part of a plan to expand the system to nine lines by 2040, with a total of 90 stops.

Line Two, currently under construction, will extend from downtown Panama City to the eastern suburbs, including a loop to Tocumen International Airport.

Line One, in operation since 2014 between Allbrook and the bedroom community of Los Andes, carries an average of 250,000 passengers daily, more than double the traffic initially forecast.