Ecuador awards 22km metro construction 05 Nov 2015

The Acciona/Odebrecht joint venture is awarded US$1.54 billion construction of the second phase of Line 1 of Quito’s first subway system, in Ecuador.

The contract, awarded by Quito City Council, includes TBM excavation of a 22,072m-long tunnel, 13 new stations, carriage sheds and workshops, and the railway facilities required for commissioning. Acciona/Ghella submitted the lowest bid out of a total of four received. TBMs in the 9.5m diameter size range are specified, for excavation of a two-track single tube system.

13 stations of 22km all-underground Quito Metro Line 1

The other competitors for the contract were joint venture teams of Ansaldo/Impregilo/Herdoiza; OHL/ICA; and Dragados/OAS/Hyunday.

The new metro line comprises the first component of a new public transport system for Quito. Acciona has already completed under a separate contract the civil works for the Phase I construction of stations at La Magdalena and El Labrador.

The new metro line will run from the Quitumbe bus terminal in the south of the city to El Labrador station in the north, on the site of an old airport. Construction is scheduled to take 36 months, with a further six months for systems integration and commissioning. Stations along the line will be located at Quitumbe, Morán Valverde, Solanda, El Calzado, El Recreo, La Magdalena, San Francisco, La Alameda, El Ejido, Universidad Central, La Pradera, La Carolina, Iñaquito, Jipijapa and El Labrador.

The project has stalled since the original construction contract was awarded in July 2014. Quito has managed to get the project back on track by negotiating a lower price from Acciona/Odebrecht, and securing national government agreement to provide a sovereign debt guarantee for a Quito City Council debt issue. Requests for direct financing from central government funds were refused. Other funding for the project, which is expected to cost a total of US$ 2billion, is coming from the Latin Development Bank, CAF, IDB, the European Investment Bank and the World Bank.