Has the global credit crunch wounded B.C. projects?
The province increasingly relies on private-public deals to build new infrastructure, but financiers have been hit hard by the economic meltdown.
1. Project: Golden Ears Bridge
What: 6-lane bridge and 14-kilometre road connecting Pitt Meadows/Maple Ridge and Langley/Surrey.
Cost: $808 million (budget increase)
Construction: To be complete this summer.
Key players and head office of consortium:
Bilfinger Berger of Germany
Depfa Bank of Ireland
Dexia of Belgium/France
Financial Fallout: Depfa Bank suffered serious financial distress in the credit crisis, and its parent company needed a bailout of $80 billion of credit and $50 billion of state guarantees. A second bailout is being negotiated. Dexia also ran into difficulty last year, and needed a bailout to help ride out the crisis.
2. Project: Royal Jubilee Hospital Patient Care Centre Project
What: 500 bed Patient Care Centre in Victoria
Cost: $282.5 million
Construction: Began 2008, to be done 2010.
Key players and head office:
Health Care Projects Canada Ltd. of the UK
Acciona S.A. of Spain
Lark Group of Surrey
Innisfree Ltd. of London, England
Depfa Bank of Ireland
Dexia of Belgium/France
Financial Fallout: Depfa Bank suffered serious financial distress in the credit crisis. Dexia also ran into difficulty last year, and needed a bailout to help ride out the crisis.
3. Project: Port Mann/Highway 1
What: Twin the existing bridge and upgrade Highway 1 for 37 km between Vancouver and Langley
Cost: Still under negotiation. Transportation Minister Kevin
Falcon has only said the project will be more expensive then
the $2 billion Canada Line.
Status: Financing is behind schedule and the deadline has been extended.
Construction: Has been delayed, but is to be done by 2013. Government has authorized limited preliminary construction to begin before funding is secured to avoid more delays.
Key players and head office:
Macquarie Group of Australia
Transtoll Inc of Australia
Peter Kiewit Sons Co of Nebraska
Flatiron Constructors Canada Ltd. of Colorado
Lead financers (according to Project Finance magazine):
BNP Paribas of France
Caja Madrid of Spain
Royal Bank of Scotland
Société Générale of France
Financial Fallout: Macquarie has been hit hard by the credit crunch, as have the lead financers to a lesser extent.
Financing falls through for $2.4 billion Port Mann
4. Project: South Fraser Perimeter Road
What: 40 km long, four-lane, route along the south side of the Fraser River, from Deltaport Way in Delta to 176th Street in Surrey.
Cost: $1 billion (budget increase)
Construction: Was to start in 2009 but now is not expected to begin until 2010.
Status: Three consortiums shortlisted to compete for the project
Key players and head office of each consortium:
1. Fraser Transportation Group
Iridium Concesiones de Infraestructuras, S.A. of Spain
Zachry American Infrastructure of Texas
Dragados S.A. of Spain
Financial Fallout: Zachry is a defendent in a $125 million lawsuit alleging fraud after cracks were found in a Texas high rise.
2. South River Connector
Babcock & Brown of Australia
Bilfinger Berger Project Investments of Germany
Peter Kiewit Sons Co of Nebraska
PCL Consultants Westcoast Inc of London, England
Financial Fallout: Babcock and Brown has lost 98 per cent of its market value and has temporarily halted the trading of its stock.
3. The Riverway Partnership
Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte, S.A. of Spain
SNC-Lavalin Inc. of Montreal
Ferrovial Agroman, S.A. of Spain
Financial Fallout: Cintra has refinanced $292 million in debt linked to a road project.
5. Project: Sea to Sky Highway
What: Widening Highway 99 between West Vancouver and Whistler.
Cost: $600 million
Construction: To be complete in 2009.
Key players and head office:
Macquarie Group of Australia
Peter Kiewit Sons Co. of Nebraska
FINANCING:
Macquarie Essential Assets Partnership
Macquarie North America Ltd.
BC Investment Management
Royal Bank of Scotland
Societe Generale of France
Financial Fallout: Similar consortium to the Port Mann project, including troubled Macquarie Group and financers Royal Bank of Scotland and Societe Generale, who received government bailouts.
6. Project: Surrey Outpatient Hospital
What: 150,000 square foot outpatient facility located near Surrey Memorial Hospital
Cost: $239 million (estimate)
Construction: Began last year, to be done in 2011.
Key players and head office:
Bouygues Batiment International of France
HSBC Infrastructure Fund Management Ltd of London, England
DEPFA Bank of Ireland
Financial Fallout: Depfa Bank suffered serious financial distress in the credit crisis.
7. Project: Fort St. John Hospital
What: 55-bed acute care hospital and 123-bed residential seniors care facility
Cost: $268 million (estimate)
Construction: To begin 2009, finish 2011
Status: Two short-listed consortiums competing for the project:
Key players and head office of each:
1. Peace River Healthcare Solutions
Bilfinger Berger of Germany
(Replaces troubled Babcock and Brown of Australia, which may still be playing a role.)
CJP Architects of New Westminster
Honeywell Ltd. (Canada) of New Jersey
Financial Fallout: Babcock and Brown has lost 98 per cent of its market value and has temporarily halted the trading of its stock.
2. ISL Health
Innisfree Infrastructure Investment Group of London, England
Acciona S.A. of Spain
Health Care Projects (Canada) Ltd. of the United Kingdom
Investec of South Africa
Stuart Olson Constructors of Richmond
Financial fallout: Investec is embroiled in a multi-million-dollar lawsuit that alleges wrongdoing.
8. Project: Kelowna and Vernon Hospital Projects
What: New "patient care towers" at both hospitals, plus a new parkade and university training area in Kelowna.
Cost: $432.9 million
Construction: Began November 2008. Kelowna to be done by August 2012, Vernon by May 2011.
Key players and head office:
Bilfinger Berger Project Investments Inc. of Germany
John Laing Investments of the U.K.
Royal Bank of Canada
Dexia Crédit Local of France
Financial Fallout: Dexia received a bailout, plummeted on the French CAC index.
9. Project: Canada Line
What: Light rail line between downtown and the airport.
Cost: $2 billion
Construction: To be complete by this fall.
Key players and head office:
Lavalin Inc of Montreal
Serco Inc of the United Kingdom
Société Générale of France
Bank of Ireland
Nord LB of Germany
Financial Fallout: Both Societe Generale and Bank of Ireland have received bailouts.
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B.C. P3 lender burning through government loan guarantees NOWPUBLIC Feb 8
The Belgian-French bank that's supplying the financing to several public-private partnership (P3) projects in British Columbia has exhausted half of the government guarantees it received in a September bailout. Dexia is a financial partner in the Royal Jubilee, Kelowna and Vernon Jubilee hospital expansions as well as the Golden Ears Bridge.
World Credit crunch makes local P3 projects risky propositions NOWPUBLIC Jan25
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