The Chinese construction company CHEC will finance the cost of the environmental impact study in order to unfreeze the project to expand 100 kilometers from San José to Limón.
The goal of the construction company China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) is to avoid further delays to the start of the project to expand and renovate 107 kilometers of road in the province of Limón on Route 32. Lack of resources at the Ministry of Public Works and Transport prevented any progress being made in this process, which in turn is a prerequisite for the Chinese bank Eximbank to hand over the $395 million with which the work will be financed.
A bill proposes allowing the government to implement executive recruitment procedures for public works in order to carry out urgent road works.
The aim is to reactivate the use of emergency mechanisms for 15 roadwork projects of relevance which have been put on hold for various reasons.Among them are the construction of the Cañas-Limonal-Canyon highway, the North Ring Road, the expansion of the road to Cartago and the route between San Jose and San Ramon.
Through a trust with a state insurer $35 million will be used to finance the construction of a major road link in the east of the Greater Metropolitan Area.
The stretch of road between Hacienda Vieja, Curridabat, and the Garantías Sociales roundabout in Zapote, will be developed using a trust, explained Carlos Villanta, Minister of Public Works and Transportation, adding that"...
Works on electrical and road infrastructure and jobs in the mining sector are some of the major infrastructure projects awarded in Central America in March 2016.
The report "Construction Projects in Central America", prepared by the Business Intelligence unit at CentralAmericaData.com contains a detailed list of major construction projects taking place in Central America.
China Harbour Engineering Company will have 42 months to expand the road linking the capital San José with the port area in Limón.
From a statement issued by the Comptroller General of the Republic:
By attached letter, the CGR endorsed the Contract Agreement and Addenda 1, 2, 3 and 4 for the "Project Design, Renovation and Expansion of National Road No.
The Comptroller has finally endorsed the controversial contract with the Chinese company CHEC to expand 107 kilometers of Route 32 to the Caribbean, with a contribution of $395 million from the Asian government.
Three years after the Chinchilla administration started negotiating with the government of China to get the loan and after a lot of objections and questions throughout the process, finally the Comptroller General of the Republic has given the green light to the project, with the endorsement of the contract.
Up to $372 million of the state pension scheme could be invested in public infrastructure projects in Costa Rica.
Funding public works using Costa Rica's national savings funds saw a new and positive development in matters relating to the management of resources in the economy. The Board of Directors of the Costa Rican Department of Social Security approved a policy that allows allocation of up to $375 million of the reserves from the regime for Disability, Old Age and Death (IVM by its initials in Spanish) to be invested in public infrastructure projects, reported Nacion.com.
The very feasible expansion of the San José-Caldera highway will increase the success of a route that has favorably changed the prospects for real estate development in the west of the capital, and logistics and tourism in the Central Pacific.
EDITORIAL
An editorial in Nacion.com reports that the concessionaire of Route 27 has now presented "... an expansion project with six lanes between La Sabana and Ciudad Colón and four on the rest of the road which goes to the port of Caldera."
A proposal has been made to extend the concept of real estate development funds to cover public and private projects for all types of infrastructure.
If the reform to the General Regulations on Management Companies and Investment Funds is approved, any investment project, from building houses to hydroelectric stations, will be able to be financed and developed through a special investment fund, that fund which would be called the Fund for Investment Infrastructure Projects.
In Costa Rica an order has been given to suspend construction of a supervision contract awarded to the state run power company for a road building project, because it is considered outside of its normal tasks.
EDITORIAL
The confluence of interests within the Costa Rican state bureaucratic corporation has allowed for institutional nepotism, by means of direct contracts between state agencies, to be thought of as beneficial to the interests of society. It is in this way that impediments are created to private companies being awarded public works contracts.
A bill has been presented to finance, build, operate and maintain transport infrastructure using trusts.
From the Law project "An Act authorizing the development of transport infrastructure through trusts":
There is a need to rethink the model for financing infrastructure, taking into account the fact that these investments impact on growth expectations for competitiveness.
The Bank of Costa Rica has been selected to hold the trust which will be used to manage the project to expand the highway between the capital and the city of San Ramon, which will cost approximately $500 million.
The extension of this road is a long-standing project, and has faced a host of problems, including the cancellation of the initial concession of the work, which involved a payment of $35 million to the Brazilian construction firm OAS, which in turn had bought the contract from Autopistas del Valle.
The Nicaraguan side is all ready for cargo transported to and from the port of Limón to save 250 kilometers, but the poor condition of a section of road in Costa Rica is preventing it.
The idea for the construction of the bridge over the San Juan River within the territory of Nicaragua, was to speed up freight between that country and the ports in Limon, on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.
In keeping with tradition in Costa Rica, only three companies have been awarded contracts for routine road maintenance for 19 out of the 22 conservation areas, with contracts totalling $24 million.
The three companies that were awarded the contracts are Anamarcala, with 13 contracts, Fresa Fresca, with two contracts in Guanacaste and Also Frutales, with four contracts.
The prospective candidate must have magician's skills, preferably qualifications as an engineer or lawyer, and a vocation to be a punching bag.
EDITORIAL
It's been two weeks since the resignation of the Minister in charge of Public Works and Transport in Costa Rica and President Solis has not yet announced who will fill the position. And there is no doubt that it will be very difficult to find not only the ideal candidate for the job, but also someone willing to accept such an impossible mission.