Senate greenlights Alto Paraná highway concessions

Paraguay's senate has greenlighted a bill to concession two highways totaling 97km in Alto Paraná department. The bill was approved with modifications, and will now be reviewed by the lower house, the public works ministry ( MOPC) reported. The highways include the 57km Puerto Indio-Mbaracayú route connecting with the Supercarretera highway, and the 40km Naranjal-San Cristóbal stretch which connects with Ruta VI. MOPC is looking to concession five highways worth a combined US$450mn and totaling over 1,000km in departments Alto Paraná, Central, Caaguazú and Itapúa. The future concessionaires will operate and maintain the highways under a 30-year contract. The executive branch plans to ensure that reasonable toll rates are implemented, according to the report. "Implementing the concession model in our country could significantly improve infrastructure conditions, generating a great amount of labor via investment in private capital," according to MOPC minister Efraín Alegre.