The concessionaire of the Spanish highway AP-36 Ocaña - La Roda, one of the nine highway operators in bankruptcy in the country, has offered to its lenders an agreement to postpone the payment of its debt 43 years, until 2057.

The project, which has a total debt of €522 million (US$707 million), is owned and managed by the joint venture Ferrovial & Sacyr. Local saving Kutxa is also a minority shareholder in the project.

The concessionaire is in a negotiation process with its creditors, who will vote on the proposal today Friday, according to local sources.

The AP-36 is the alternative to the saturated A-3 towards the Levente region, and to the N-301 which connects Madrid with Toledo, Cuenca and Albacete.

The Madrid-Levante Highway consists of three sections and connects to the Madrid-Sur Highway, also managed by Cintra, in the environs of Madrid.

The first section, R-4/A-43, is 126.45 km in length and is subject to toll. The second, A-43/A-31, is 24.76 km long and is toll-free. The third section, N-301 to Atalaya del Cañavate, of 31.56 km, is also without charge to users.

The Spanish government has announced plans to group the nine bankruptcy road concessions under the same vehicle which would have a total debt of €3800 million. After this process, the government aims to get a debt haircut of 50% and refinance the rest with the launch of 30 years bonds.

Spanish banks including Banco Santander, BBVA, La Caixa, Banco Popular, Sabadell and Bankia, are willing to accept debt discounts of up to 50%, but the Association of Spanish contractors (Seopan), whose members own most of the concessions, has rejected this solution.

The eight other projects in bankruptcy are the following:

• 4 radial highways in Madrid, R-2, R-3, R-4, and R-5;
• Barajas Airport - Madrid highway;
• Madrid - Toledo highway;
• Cartagena - Vera highway; and
• Alicante bypass highway.