Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP) and Avan Norte- Gestao Da Ferrovia de Alta Velocidade, a company established by the consortium LusoLAV, signed the 30-year concession contract for the design, construction, and maintenance of the Porto–Oiã section of the Lisbon–Porto high-speed railway. 

This segment forms part of the project's initial phase. To support the construction of the Porto–Oiã section, the European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a financing agreement worth €875 million (US$1 billion) with Avan Norte – Gestão da Ferrovia de Alta Velocidade. This represents the first installment of a larger €3 billion (US$3.4 billion) funding package approved by the EIB in 2024 to help deliver the new high-speed rail link between Portugal’s two main urban centers. Alongside the EIB loan—partially backed by the InvestEU programme—the project will also receive:

• €900 million (US$1 billion) in supplementary financing from various national and international financial institutions

• €480 million (US$548 million) in grant support from the European Union’s Connecting Europe Facility (CEF)

• €150 million (US$171 million) in co-funding provided by IP

Phase 1 of the Lisbon-Porto high-speed railway will cover a total of 143 km, linking Porto-Campanhã to Soure (Coimbra district). The first section of this phase will connect Porto-Campanhã and Oiã, in the Aveiro district (71 km). Once in service, the high-speed rail line will cut travel time between Lisbon and Porto from nearly three hours to just 75 minutes, with an expected annual ridership of around 10 million passengers. The EIB loan is supported by InvestEU, the European Union’s flagship programme aimed at generating over €372 billion in additional investment between 2021 and 2027.

The Avan Norte consortium will be responsible for the design, construction, and long-term maintenance of the Porto–Oiã segment, which will be delivered under a 30-year Public-Private Partnership (PPP) agreement. Led by IP, this section of the high-speed rail project—stretching from Porto-Campanhã to Oiã—will include:

• 71 km of newly built high-speed railway infrastructure

• A new underground station at Santo Ovídio in Vila Nova de Gaia

• Upgrades to Porto Campanhã Station to support high-speed train operations

• Construction of a new bridge over the Douro River

• Connection points to the existing Northern Line near Canelas

• A new traction power substation in the Estarreja area