The government of Ecuador has announced a plan to develop four public private partnership (PPP) infrastructure projects in the country.

New regulations and laws are being established for the PPP plan to go ahead. The plan includes the development of:

• Posorja port, which is currently a small fishing port in the Guayas delta, 50 km south of Guayaquil centre. In 2006, a US$450 million concession to build and operate a deepwater port with a 15 m draft in Posorja was awarded to Spanish group Alianza Internacional Portuaria (Alinport). However, works never began and the authorization for construction was later revoked.

• Machala port, which is Ecuador's second most important port. Located in the city of Machala, Bolivar Port is the gate of the export products of the rich region of the Province of El Oro and parts of the provinces of Azuay, Canar, Guayas and Zamora and northern Peru. This port mobilizes 80% of banana production in Ecuador.

• Rio 7 highway in Huaquillas, a 95 km road that would link the northeast and northwest of El Oro province. The total project investment is estimated at US$356 million.

The fourth project has not been disclosed. The projects could be developed on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis. The four projects plan would need an investment estimated at US$1.5 billion.