GEK TERNA – Egnatia Street: The “time” of signatures for the concession contract

The time comes for the signing of the concession contract of Egnatia Road between the consortium and Egis (75% – 25% respectively in the concession, 100% TERNA in construction). As we had recently mentioned, March was regarded as the critical month for this concession agreement, we are now on our way to its completion and the information states that on Thursday 28 March, if no reversal occurs, they will “fall” signatures from the parties, the TAIPED and the association of GEK TERNA-Egis companies. As we have noted, it was basically pending the fulfilment of certain heresies on the part of the public, such as the publication of a Joint Ministerial Decision to increase tolls for the use of the road, from EUR 0.03 to EUR 0.04 per km. Then, with the start of the concession, the transit fees were planned to go to 5 minutes per kilometre by the concessionaire, while in general the toll valuations are also linked to the implementation of work by GEK TERNA, the development of vertical axes etc. The concession agreement concerns the financing, operation, maintenance and exploitation of the Egnatia Road from Igoumenitsa to the Gardens of Evros, 658 km long, as well as all three vertical roads. Siatista – Krystalopigi, Halastra – Evzones and Thessaloniki Promaton, with a length of all three 225 km, committed to upgrade the concessionaire, for a period of 35 years. Obviously, further steps are required before the economic closure of the Egnatia Road Convention (nearly 1.5 billion euros), to “pass” by the House etc. With the closure of the Egnatia Road case, and in conjunction with the fact that the GEK TERNA group has recently been declared a temporary contractor for the BOAK concession contract, and has also won the competition for the new Attica Road contract (an appeal decision by another consortium is pending), it is obvious that the proposed contract becomes powerful in the field of road concessions. Besides, GEK TERNA controls entirely the New Street (Ionia Street and Athens – Lamia) and Central Street (E 65), has a share in Olympia Road (Elebina – Corinth – Patras – Pyrgos), participation in PPPs, in the shape it manufactures and manages the new airport in Kasteli (Cretis) etc. Therefore, the GEK TERNA group is the dominant player in the field of concession contracts in Greece.