Three consortiums made up of Chinese, Spanish, Peruvian, Brazilian and Mexican companies submitted bids for the design and construction of Line 2 of the Panama Metro.
From a statement issued by the Metro Department of Panama:
The Metro de Panama SA this morning received proposals from three consortia aspiring build Line 2 of the Panama Metro.
A bill has been presented that would grant the company obtaining the concession to build and operate the container port in Corozal Oeste the same tax benefits as other port operators in Panama.
From a statement issued by the National Assembly of Panama:
A bill establishing similar tax exemptions as those in other ports will be offered by the Panama Canal Authority to the company granted the concession for the design, construction, development and operation of the port complex in Corozal Oeste, was presented to the full the National Assembly by the Minister for Canal Affairs, Roberto Roy.
At the request of the companies taking part in the contest, the Metro Secretary has extended the deadline for submission of bids for line 2.
The deadline for submitting financial bids to participate in the tender process for Line 2 of the Panama Metro has been postponed until January 30, 2015.
The Secretary of the Metro announced that starting 2015 the trains and stations on Line 1 will have advertising spaces that will be offered through competitive tenders.
Following the example of Hong Kong and Singapore, the Secretariat of the Metro will make available advertising space in stations and on trains, from which it expects to receive $25.2 million and will use some of those funds to pay for fare subsidies.
The government of Panama has announced that on September 15th they will announce the specifications of the tender for the supervision, design and construction of Metro Line 2.
From a statement issued by the Presidency of Panama:
The government has signed a contract for the supervision, design and construction of the new railway line.
During the Cabinet Council, held on July 29 in the Ricardo J.
The cost of the work will be around $2 billion, the same as line 1, and will be 23 kilometers long.
An article in Reuters reports that "... The end of April Panama will start work on the bidding process for the proposed construction of the second metro line, which could cost $2 billion."
The Executive Secretary of Transportation, Roberto Roy, said that "...The first thing we have to do is provide documentation to participants in the process, we want to do this in April because the specifications are almost finished. "
The work to be tendered next year will be 6.2 miles longer than the first line, having a total length of 22 kilometers.
The project cost is still unknown, however, it has been revealed that the original proposal by the Secretariat of the Panama Metro has undergone some modifications. For example, the original route ran from Carmen church, where it interconnected with line one, following the Ricardo J.
Both works will be components of a single tender that will be convened by the next government.
The cost of the work will not be released until next April, but it is estimated that the fourth bridge over the Panama Canal alone could cost about $800 million, a project which will be funded by Japan.
"The Japanese government showed enthusiasm from the start, not only for the fourth bridge but also the feasibility study for the third line of the Metro, towards Panama Pacifico, Arraiján and Chorrera, as stated in the Master Plan for the Metro Network. In addition, the Japanese government through its development agency JICA, and with its own funds, ordered a detailed feasibility study, which is being carried out at the moment and will be completed in April 2014," said Roberto Roy, Panama Metro secretary and chairman of the board of the Panama Canal Authority (ACP).