A total of 30 construction companies are bidding for a juicy 45.7m-euro contract to build the Gorgoracha-Puntalón stretch of the A-7 Mediterranean autovia, which is not surprising, given the fact that major public works around the country have been cut drastically.
This section of the autovia has been inactive for the last 22 months after the company that was building it put forward an alteration to the original route because of unforeseen geological problems. The proposal put forward by the company increased the section budget by 80% making it impossible to continue under the original agreement between the Central Government and the construction company.
Coupled with a growing lack of public funds, causing the Minister of Public Works, (Fomento), Jose Blanco, to announce that proposed and ongoing projects around the country were to be dropped, many feared that the much-awaited A-7 would languish indefinitely. However, the A-7 received a reprieve when Sr Blanco announced that the A-7 would not be affected and funds were being set aside.
Instead of using the German method; i.e., paying the company once the autovia was complete, the Central Government has opted for paying each month for work completed. Prior to the economic crisis, major public works were paid up front, which unfortunately led to a string of subcontracting with the company that actually carried out the job doing it on a budget far inferior to that handed-over by the Government.
So, by the 17th of this month one of those 30 companies will be awarded the contract. The first payment will be ready for December, meaning that it is almost certain that the company chosen will have already started their task before the year is out. As for its conclusion, the Government will only commit to saying that it will be finished before the end of 2012.
Included in the project is the Motril Port connection, which, however, will receive a lower priority than the Gorgoracha-Puntalón section of the A-7, for obvious reasons. Bear in mind that only 25% of this section of the A-7 remains to be completed – in other words, work was three quarters completed when they struck a geological complication.
The Government also announced that the very important section of the A-7 that will circumvent Torrecuevas, linking up with Carchuna, will also be finished by the end of next year.
Editorial Analysis: the socialists in power in Madrid and Sevilla have more or less assimilated that they will be in the opposition after the General and Regional Elections on the 22nd of November. Therefore, promises can be made without worrying to much about the political comeback if they are not met – somebody else will be taking the flak.
However, it goes without saying that the coast is connected to the city of Granada through the efforts of the socialists, with the conservatives twiddling their thumbs on this issue during the eight years that they controlled the Central Government.
The form of payment for this section of the autovia is interesting because, there is no money to pay it all up front and no construction company is in a suitably healthy financial situation to run with the costs and collect once it is finished (the German method). So the monthly-payment commitment will fall on who ever is in power during the coming 12 months..
(News: Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)
Tabs: news,andalucia,andalusia,andalucía,costa tropical,granada,A7,A-7,gorgoracha,puntalon