Strabag in consortium for third Irish PPP project

The DirectRoute consortium, which includes Austrian contractor Strabag, has been awarded a €330 million public-private partnership (PPP) to finance, plan, build and operate a 57km section of the N17/N18 motorway between Gort and Tuam near Galway in Ireland.

Construction will begin later this month and is scheduled for completion in November 2017. This will mark the start of the 25-year operating period.

Equity funding represents 12% of the overall funding for the project, with Strabag’s share as investor amounting to 10% of this equity. Strabag holds a stake of 25% in the construction consortium.

The European Investment Bank has agreed to provide €144 million for the new motorway link. Contracts were signed in Dublin by the Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar, and Minister for Public Expenditure & Reform Brendan Howlin, and the European Investment Bank.

The N17/N18 motorway is the third concession project for Strabag in Ireland. Together with the DirectRoute consortium, the company operates the Limerick and Fermoy PPP projects.