Colombia's National Infrastructure Agency (ANI) has awarded Episol - Conecol consortium the development of Villavicencio - Yopal corridor PPP project.

The team beat out competition from nine other shortlisted bidders.

The project involves the upgrade from 1 x 1 to 2 x 2 lanes of the 209 km road between Cumaral and Aguazul and the construction of a nex 2 x 2 road between Aguazul and Yopal and between Villavencio and Cumaral. The 266 km road project will involve, among others, the development of 32 road bridges and 39 pedestrian bridges.

The PPP concession contract cover studies and final designs, financing, environmental management, construction, renovation, operation and maintenance.

The total project investment is estimated at P1880 billion (US$727.5 million).

The project is part of the second wave of 4G highway projects, which includes a total of 9 concessions. This second wave includes a total investment of about P11,800 billion (US$4.64 billion). 4G involves the construction of about 8,000 km of roads, including 1,200km of four-lane highways, with the majority of projects to be carried out as PPPs.