Humala: Peru switchover won't slow investments

Peru's change of government next month won't slow investment of billions of dollars in infrastructure and mining projects, President Ollanta Humala said.

President-elect Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, who is scheduled to take office July 28 after winning the June 5 run-off, met with Humala's prime minister Pedro Cateriano to coordinate the transition (pictured, Cateriano on the right).

"If we manage an orderly handover, all these projects will continue," Humala told reporters in Lima. "We're leaving the numbers in the black and with upward projections. We have an investment capacity that will enable economic expansion and job creation."

While Humala's government has awarded a record US$20bn in public-private infrastructure concessions since 2011, tens of billions of dollars in infrastructure, mining and energy projects have been held up by permitting delays, according to industry associations such as Confiep and AFIN.

Kuczynski, a former investment banker and ex-finance minister, has said his government will focus on accelerating the country's biggest infrastructure investment projects in a bid to jumpstart the economy.

The transport and communications ministry, meanwhile, approved a five-year national railway plan that will involve investment of US$14.259bn, according to a notice published in official newspaper gazette El Peruano. Caracas-based multilateral lender CAF will provide technical assistance in planning development of the rail network, the publication said.

In other infrastructure news, the health ministry plans to finish construction of 50 medical centers by end-2017, deputy health minister Pedro Grillo said in broadcast comments.

The government will also have invested US$11.759bn in electrification projects by the time it steps down, compared with US$4.515bn from 2006-11, deputy energy minister Raúl Pérez-Reyes said. About 93% of the Peruvian population has access to electricity, while 78% of rural homes are connected to the grid, he told El Peruano. Peru aims to link up 100% of the population by 2021, the official said.

The government also seeks to nearly double the number of homes with natural gas connections to 700,000 by end-2017 from 390,000 today, he said. Concessionaire Calidda is installing 8,000-10,000 connections per month, he added.

COSTA VERDE

The 500mn-sol (US$150mn) Costa Verde coastal road, meanwhile, which will run from Callao port adjacent to Lima to the district of Chorrillos, is scheduled to be completed by January 2017, said Callao regional president Félix Moreno. The six-lane road, which will reduce average journey times to 25 minutes and comes with a cycle path, is 42% complete, Moreno told state news agency Andina.