Panama City - Two consortia and one company presented documentation to pre-qualify for the bid to build the bridge on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal.
Representatives from each of the following internationally renowned companies/consortia handed in their proposals: Odebrecht – Hyundai Joint Venture (Brazil – Korea); Acciona Infraestructuras – Tradeco (Spain – Mexico); Vinci Construction Grands Projets (France).
The pre-qualification process is the first of two stages to determine which company or consortium will be tasked with building the bridge on the Atlantic side.
The evaluation process is based on best-value criteria. This entails qualifying participants based on technical criteria, experience and financial capability. The firms which meet the basic requirements will move to the second and final phase of the process, for which the ACP will release a request for proposals (RFP). Thus, once the evaluation period is completed in approximately 45 days, the names of the pre-qualified consortia will be announced, so that they may participate in the second stage of the process for the final selection of the contractor who will build the bridge. The company/consortia which make it to this phase will be required to submit proposals and conduct visits to the site where the new bridge will be built. The deadline to receive proposals is scheduled for July of 2012.
The bridge design is inspired by similar infrastructure work in countries such as Spain, Korea, France, China and Japan. The double-plane, twin pylon, cable-stayed bridge will feature two lanes of traffic in each direction. Its length will be 4.6 kilometers, and it will stand 75 meters above sea level. The bridge will be located 3 kilometers north of Gatun Locks and the new Post-Panamax locks on the Atlantic side province of Colon. Once completed, it will benefit neighboring communities, since it will expedite crossing over the Canal.