A consortium led by construction group BAM Ireland has signed a contract with the National Roads Authority (NRA) for the €350 million M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy public-private partnership (PPP) motorway project in Co Wexford.
This is expected to support up to 2,500 jobs and will see construction activity commence in January 2016.
It will involve the design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of 31.4km of the M11 motorway, with sections of dual carriageway and the N80 Link Road routes, together with the design, construction and financing of the 8km single carriageway on the N30 route.
This contract follows BAM’s recent completion of the €250 million Arklow to Rathnew section of the M11 motorway, also on a PPP basis.
Spanish infrastructure group
The consortium also includes the Spanish infrastructure group,
Iridium
, which manages more than 90 companies in the construction and operation of various government concessions and PPPs.
The project will be undertaken by a BAM Civil and Dragados joint venture.
The new road will be operational in August 2019, followed by a 25-year concession period for the consortium but will not include tolls. It is designed to ease traffic congestion by bypassing Ferns, Camolin and Enniscorthy.
BAM Ireland chief executive Theo Cullinane said he was pleased to have concluded the agreement with the NRA.
“Following the recent opening of the Arklow to Rathnew portion of the M11, this new motorway will further enhance transport links to the South East,” he said.
“PPP is a highly effective model for investing and developing Ireland’s infrastructure, which plays a critical role in our economic recovery,” he added.
Latest accounts for BAM Contractors Ltd show it made a profit of €7 million on turnover of €306 million in 2013.
BAM PPP Ireland Ltd, the entity that co-ordinates PPP bids in Ireland, made a profit of €120,000 on turnover of €2.9 million in 2014.
BAM has been involved in a number of PPPs in Ireland, including the Newlands Cross junction in Dublin, the M1 Dundalk western bypass, the M7/M8 Portlaoise bypass and the N25 Waterford bypass PPP motorway schemes.
Last year, it constructed eight schools in Ireland under a PPP bundle and it recently commenced works on the design, building, financing and maintenance of another four.
