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Challenging the Wisdom of the Trans Texas Corridor.
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Macquarie, Transurban taking a toll in the US September 12, 2007 The Age [Melbourne, Victoria, Australia] MACQUARIE Infrastructure Group and Transurban are blitzing bids on some of America's major toll roads. Speaking to the Merrill Lynch Australian Investment Conference in New York, MIG head of investor relations Stewart Green said the Macquarie Bank-backed fund was looking over the Pennsylvania Turnpike, a major toll road, after governor Ed Rendell called for potential bidders to present their qualifications by October 1. "We will look at that opportunity," Mr Green said. He described it as a transaction that could be quite big, but MIG would not give any details about its potential bid. Macquarie is the world's largest owner and developer of toll roads. It has made billions buying infrastructure assets and packaging them in funds that it then sells to investors seeking the steady, reliable flow of tolls or other usage charges. Toll road rival Transurban said it had agreed to build and operate high-occupancy lanes on the Capital Beltway, a key toll road that surrounds the US capital, Washington, DC. Four new toll lanes will be built on to the 102-kilometre Capital Beltway over five years. Transurban will then have a 75-year operating period. The five-year design and construction phase is expected to cost $US1.4 billion ($A1.7 billion), of which $US409 million will be provided by Virginia, the state bordering the capital. "This project enjoys community and political support," said Transurban chief executive Kym Edwards. "It will deliver the option of free-flow travel through one of the most congested and economically important regions of the US." For the purposes of the deal, Transurban's US investment vehicle, DRIVe, has created a "concessionaire", or joint venture with the New York Stock Exchange-listed company Fluor Corporation. That concessionaire, Capital Beltway Express LLC, will be able to collect tolls directly from vehicles with fewer than three passengers. The average trip during business hours is expected to cost between $US5 and $US6. Under the agreement, Virginia will also make payments to Capital Beltway Express if the number of vehicles with more than three passengers exceeds projections. Capital Beltway Express plans to raise about $US1.3 billion through tax-exempt bonds.
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This Page Last Updated: Tuesday September 11, 2007