Atlandes, the project company for the A63 motorway PPP project in France,  has refinanced the initial debt package put in place in January 2011.

Atlandes is owned by: Colas Sud-Ouest, Aximum, Spie batignolles, NGE Concessions, Egis Investment Partners France, HSBC European Motorway Investments and DIF Infrastructure II.

The initial funding package included €900 million (US$990 million) of senior debt and €200 million (US$220 million) of equity investment.

Atlandes has signed a new €860 million (US$945.9 million) financing agreement, for a period of 25 years, with Banca IMI, BBVA, BNP Paribas, CIC, Crédit Agricole, ING Bank and Société Générale.

Atlandes signed a 40 year concession agreement with the French State to design, build, operate and finance a 104 km motorway in South West France.

The A63 autoroute project consisted of the enlargement and upgrade of an existing 105km road linking the towns of Salles (Gironde) and St-Geours de Maremne from a two to a three-lane highway. The project also comprised the construction of two cross-lane toll barriers and parking facilities for 1,200 heavy goods vehicles (HGVs).

The A63 project is part of the trans-European network and will sustain trade flows between the Iberian Peninsula and northern Europe.