ACS
Actividades de Construcción y Servicios

Activity 2010

Relevant Facts  

Within the scope of the operating project portfolio, as well as of Iridium’s corporate activity, the following relevant events occurred in 2010:

• Iridium led the table of the world’s main infrastructure concession groups again in 2010, according to the ranking published annually by the specialist journal “Public Works Financing” (PWF).The ceremony to lay the first stone for the I 595 project was held on 26 February 2010.
• The concession contract for the Portuguese High-Speed Railway Line, Poceirao to Caia stretch (Madrid – Lisbon route), was signed last 8 May. This contract, in which Iridium is a participant, includes the design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of Portugal’s high-speed railway line on the Poceirao to Caia stretch (Madrid to Lisbon route), as well as the design, construction, financing and operation of a new station at Évora. The project investment is 1,651 million euros and the concession term is 40 years. This is the first contract awarded for the development of Portugal’s high-speed network (Madrid – Lisbon – Porto – Vigo).
• The operation of the 41 km of the Portlaoise - Cullahill/Castletown M7/M8, with a 33.3% holding by IRIDIUM, started on 28 May 2010. Construction was executed in under three years, concluding four months before the anticipated completion date. The concession contract, with a duration of 30 years, involved total investment of 367 million euros.
• On 14 July past, Iridium, through its subsidiary ACS Infrastructure Canada and the Canadian company Ledcor Development signed the Concession Contract with the Province of British Columbia for the financing, construction, refurbishment, operation and maintenance for the South Fraser Perimeter Road Project, a new motorway 40 km long south of Vancouver with an investment of 716 million Canadian dollars.
• The Confirmation Report for the Son Espases Hospital works was signed on 10 October 2010, along with the ceremony for "handing over of the keys". This milestone marks the start of the operating period for the concession company (in which Iridium has a 49.5% stake) which over the next 30 years will be responsible for the operation of all the non-clinical services in the Balearic Island’s reference Hospital.
• On 28 October 2010, the concession company Vespucio Norte in Chile re-established full service on the motorway after the earthquake which occurred in the country on 27 February 2010.
• On 5 November 2010, Iridium, through its subsidiary ACS Infrastructure Canada was named as the winner of the Windsor Essex Parkway Project, with a 33.33% stake in the consortium. The concession contract was signed on 15 December 2010 along with the finalisation of the financing with 10 banks for the project, with an approximate investment of 1.3 billion Canadian dollars. The future road will be the most significant investment in motorways in the province of Ontario and is the result of commitments from the Canadian and Ontario Governments to improve the transport network in the Windsor border zone.
• Serrano Parking in Madrid opened on 1 December past. The concession contract consists of the construction and operation of three car parks under Calle Serrano and their integration with the project for remodelling works for this street between the street named María de Molina and Plaza de la Independencia and the side streets in the area of influence. Project investment is 132 million euros and the concession term is 40 years.
• Authorisation was obtained on 15 December for the start-up and the respective safety certificates for the Figueras to Perpignan high-speed train. The first commercial passenger train ran along the international section on 19 December and the first freight convoy ran starting from the port of Barcelona on 21 December.

The company continued to show great efficiency and capacity for innovation in the management of project financing. In this regard, several financing operations were arranged over the course of 2010, for a sum of approximately 3.8 billion euros, without recourse to shareholders, in spite of the extremely difficult global economic and financial situation. Noteworthy among these are:

• Financing arrangements for the Diagonal Artery in Catalonia (Spain) was finalised on 18 March for 249 million euros.
• On 30 April the financing arrangements were finalised for the Pyrenean Highway (Navarre, Spain) for 152 million euros.
• Financing arrangements for the Poceirao to Caia stretch of the High-Speed Railway Line in Portugal were finalised on 8 May for 692 million euros.
• The financing arrangements for the South Fraser Perimeter Road in the Province of British Columbia (Canada) were finalised on 14 July for 200 million Canadian dollars.
• On 19 July the financing arrangements for Stretch IV of Barcelona Metro Line 9 were finalised for 544 million euros.
• The financing arrangements for 15.5 million euros for 5 Basic Units and 5 Health Centres in Palma de Mallorca were completed on 23 November.
• On 26 November the financing arrangements for Stretch II of Barcelona Metro Line 9 were finalised for 735 million euros.
• Financing arrangements were completed on 15 December for the Windsor-Essex Parkway in Ontario (Canada) with a bank debt of 1,162 million Canadian dollars.
• On 19 December, the financing arrangements for the Can Misses Hospital in Ibiza were finalised for 100 million euros.