Transport for London (TfL) in the UK has announced Cintra, a subsidiary company of Spanish Ferrovial, as a preferred bidder for the Silvertown tunnel project in East London, valued at GBP 1 billion (EUR 1.4 billion).

The project involves the development of an underground connection under the river Themes between Silvertown area and Greenwich Peninsula in east London. The river crossing will comprise of a twin bore road tunnel alongside Blackwall Tunnel with connections to the A1020 Silvertown Way/Lower Lea Crossing at the north and to the A102 Blackwall Tunnel Approach at the south.

The proposed concession period is 30 years. 

Cintra will be responsible for the design, building, financing and maintenance (DBFM) of the project. Cintra's only competition for the project was consortium led by Hochtief, subsidiary of ACS, after the joint venture formed by Skanska and Strabag had withdrawn from the tender process in March 2019.

Transport for London is expected to award the project for 1.4-kilometer long tunnel at the end of the month.

There was a delay of five months in completion of the contract award process. Now the authority is expecting tunnel construction works to be completed by the year 2024. The original deadline was the end of 2023.

Silvertown project is considered a project of "significant national relevance" by the Government of the United Kingdom, which seeks to improve the high congestion of the Blackwall Tunnel, whose infrastructure dates from the sixties and is currently at the maximum of its capacity.