PPP project, Rehabilitation & maintenance of roads in Mexico

As an adjacent region to Mexico City, the State of Mexico is one of the most developed states in the country. However, its southern area has been lagging behind in terms of economic growth and human development indicators.

Poverty and extreme poverty indicators in this region are extremely high− exceeding 80% of the population living in poverty in some municipalities− and are significantly above the average for the state as a whole (47.6%). The region also includes seven of the ten districts with the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) in the country.

The scarce public investment over the last thirty years is a major cause of this backwardness in the State of Mexico's southern region, resulting in a significant deterioration of infrastructure and the public services available to the population.

The 2017-2023 Development Plan of the State of Mexico set economic transformation among its priorities to consolidate productivity and competitiveness and become the country's logistics hub. Achieving this objective requires expansion, modernization, and adequate maintenance of road infrastructure with a long-term vision.

Transportation infrastructure is fundamental for the economy's growth and the provision of essential services through regional and market integration, reduction of production and distribution costs, the promotion of competitiveness in strategic sectors, and generation of productive jobs. Through transportation infrastructure, essential goods and services such as education, health, and security will reach areas that are far from large urban centers, thus providing greater opportunities for development.

Aligned with the Development Plan and seeking to combat the social backwardness of the most vulnerable areas, the Government of the State of Mexico promoted in 2019 the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project for the rehabilitation and maintenance of 1,637.8 km of 82 roads belonging to the toll-free network of state ownership, a project known as "Caminos del Sur."

These roads play a fundamental role in the connectivity and mobility of the southern area since they provide access to municipal facilities and tourist interest areas, as well as to administrative and economic centers located in the state capital and its conurbation area (Toluca-Metepec), where the main centers of consumption and the most extensive range of services are located.

Antea Group has been involved in the project since its beginning, leading the team that carried out the technical, legal, and economic-financial structuring of the PPP project.

The PPP project established a scheme with a 12-year horizon, determining the roads service standards to be achieved and maintained ensure that users can drive along them quickly and safely.

After the project was approved, an international public bidding process was initiated. Then, in August 2020, the consortium formed by the Mexican companies Vise S.A. de C.V. and Impulsora de Soluciones en Infraestructura S.A. de C.V. was awarded the contract.

The initial rehabilitation of the set of roads is expected to be completed in 2023, therefore initiating the conservation stage which will last for another 10 years, resulting in a total investment in the southern part of the State of Mexico of more than thirteen billion pesos (approximately 650 million euros).

This investment is expected to adequately respond to the traffic volumes, loads, and dimensions of the vehicles that travel through the network, improve safety conditions, and reduce travel times and operating costs for users, thus contributing to the economic and social development of the southern zone through its efficient integration with the more industrialized areas.