Spanish consortium to carry out Bogotá metro studies

The tender to carry out studies to develop Bogotá's metro system has been awarded to Spanish consortium Sener-Transporte Metropolitano de Barcelona, Colombian paper El Tiempo reported.

The consortium won the bid with over 70 points from a maximum of 100, the report said, adding that only Sener-TMB obtained a score over 70 which was the minimum requirement.

The design tender for line 1 of the metro and its financial and legal structure was launched on March 19.

In May, six firms were shortlisted from the 56 that expressed interest in the project.

Of these six consortiums, only three sent the documentation required by the World Bank (WB): Sener-TMB, Spanish Ineco-Metro de Madrid, and British Steer Davies and Gleave.

Now the WB, which is assisting the Bogotá government in the process, has to review the process and give its authorization.

If all goes well, Sener-TMB will have one year to define the route that metro line 1 will use, the fare system, the cost of the overall project and how much of the national and local budget will be assigned to the project.

The consortium must also decide how the metro will integrate with the capital's mass transportation system Transmilenio and the future suburban rail project Tren de Cercanías.

To establish the financial structure of the project, Sener-TMB will receive advice from Spanish bank Banco Santander and consulting firm ALG, the paper said.

On the legal front, the consortium will be assisted by Spanish law firm Garrigues Abogados and Spanish company Incoplan, which is specialized in providing solutions for development projects, the report said.

Construction of line 1 is slated to start at end-2011.

Publication: Business News Americas - English News
Provider: Business News Americas
Date: October 9, 2008