Minas Gerais state plans to launch a multibillion dollar tender by June this year for a 30-year concession to expand and operate its metro system in state capital Belo Horizonte.
Investments for the public-private-partnership (PPP) are estimated at USD 1.55B while revenue is expected to hit USD 7.8B during the concession period. The submission of comments and suggestions regarding the PPP has been extended until March 5 as many demands from business groups and the public were received early on in the process.
Before the tender launch, the contract will need to be approved by Brazil’s urban rail company CBTU (current administrator of metro line one), in addition to Metrominas (the new administrator of all three lines).
A total of USD 891M in funding for the initiative is coming from the urban mobility budget of Brazil’s growth acceleration plan, PAC. The remaining USD 662M will come from the state government, the municipal governments of Belo Horizonte and Contagem, and the private sector.
The concession entails expanding line I, constructing, operating and maintaining line II (between the Barreiro and Nova Suíça stations), and operating and maintaining line III (between the Savassi and Lagoinha stations). Metrominas will be conducting a separate bidding process to construct line III.
Currently, the city’s metro consists of one 28.2 kilometer line with 19 stops running between the Eldorado and Vilarinho stations.