Mexico's transport and communications ministry (STC) has awarded the Tuxpan-Tampico highway concession in Veracruz state to a Mota Engil-led consortium.

The team is formed by  Mota Engil México, Desarrollo y Recuperaciones Urbanas, GI8 Infraestructura and Vanguardia en Soporte.

The preferred bidder has estimated the total construction investment at P$3.48 billion (US$257.8 million) with a public subsidy of P$1.28 billion (US$94.7 million).

Five teams submitted final proposals but two of them were classified as insolvent.

The team beat out competition from Coconal, in association with Operadora de Autopistas (investment of P$3.69 billion) and Acciona Infraestructuras, in consortium with Constructora y Edificadora Gia+A and HI Cuadrada Tuxpan (investment of P$6.10 billion). Both bids were disqualified as they failed to meet the minimum financial requirements.

The new road will start from the junction with the Tihuatlán-Tuxpan highway and will end at the connection with the Tuxpan-Tampico federal highway in Tamaulipas. Works includes building  a 159km highway, with a cross section of 12m wide, considering two traffic lanes of 3.5 meters each one and road shoulders of 2.5 meters. The project also includes five bypass junctions and 60 structures.

The project, which aims to improve road connections between central Mexico and northeast states, is part of the 2013-2015 Infrastructure Investment Program. The project involves the construction, operation and maintenance of the road for a period of 30 years.

In July 2013, Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht submitted an unsolicited proposal for the project to the SCT after the approval of the new Public Private Partnership (PPP) law that allows unsolicited proposals.