- The award is for the best road, bridge, or tunnel project at the Partnerships Awards. This category includes all agreements signed between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019, for privately financed public infrastructures designed in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific.
- The IJ Global Awards recognize the best transactions made by African and European companies that closed in 2019.
The Silvertown tunnel, which will connect the Greenwich Peninsula and London’s Silvertown district, received two awards. The work will consist of a 1.4-kilometer dual carriageway and 0.6 km of access ramps. This will be the largest highway tunnel in the United Kingdom and the largest infrastructure built under the Thames in the last 30 years.
The agreement for its design, construction, financing, and maintenance entails a public-private partnership signed between Riverlinx Ltd. (a company composed of Cintra, Aberdeen Standard Investments, BAM PPP, Macquarie Capital, and SK E&C) and Transport for London (TfL).
The jury for the Partnerships Awards noted that this is a pioneering project in the United Kingdom with a customized financial plan. The judges have highlighted the payment mechanism’s flow, which was designed to incentivize the influx of traffic during peak hours, as well as planning renovations and maintenance work that are scheduled not to interfere with the road’s use. They were also impressed with the efficiency of the contractual framework between the parties and its social and environmental impact.
“Winning this award is a tremendous honor, and it was my privilege to accept it on behalf of the project sponsors and everyone else responsible for making the Silvertown Tunnel a reality. This serves to demonstrate that the project has assembled an excellent team of local and international experts to finance, deliver, and operate it for the next 30 years.”
Silverton was also recognized by the IJ Global Awards 2019 in the European transaction category for transport. High-level personalities in the regional energy and infrastructure community voted for the winners. None of them were allowed to vote in their own business areas, which is why they are considered the most independent awards in this sector.
About the Silvertown Tunnel
Silvertown will be the largest highway tunnel in the UK with bus lanes in both directions. It will improve public transit connections crossing the River Thames at peak hours, with 37 zero-emission buses running in both directions every hour. There are 6 more that currently traverse the Blackwall Tunnel.
Another improvement that is expected after the infrastructure is opened is fewer traffic jams and, as a result, lower emissions. Heavy traffic on the Blackwall Tunnel will also be relieved.
