Plenary Americas and its Calcasieu Bridge Partners (CBP) consortium have reached financial close on the US$2.3 billion Interstate 10 Calcasieu River Bridge project which will connect the towns of Lake Charles and Westlake in Louisiana.

The financing amounted to issuing US$1.33 billion of tax-exempt Private Activity Bonds (PABs). The concession, with total capital expenditures of US$3.37 billion and a construction budget of US$2.27 billion, includes the replacement of the existing bridge, which is more than 70 years old. The project has both public and private funding sources. The State of Louisiana will contribute almost US$1.2 billion during construction, which will be paid in line with certain construction milestones. The long-term financing includes a US$1.33 billion issue of tax-exempt Private Activity Bonds (PABs). This issue is divided into four different financing tranches with maturities between 2054 and 2066.

The issuers were J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. The remaining private capital will be injected at the end of the construction period and is backed by letters of credit provided by ACCIONA and its partners. 

CBP will now begin the design-build phase of the project, with construction expected to start in 2026 and be completed in 2031. Members of the CBP team include:

• Lead developer and equity member: Plenary Americas
• Equity members: ACCIONA and Sacyr
• Design-Build Joint Venture: ACCIONA and Sacyr
• Tolling Operator: Kapsch
• Operations & Maintenance: Plenary Americas, ACCIONA and Sacyr