Globalvia has announced that it has completed the purchase of the Pocahontas Parkway, its first US concession, from a group of investors led by Macquarie.

This agreement marks the culmination of a process that began in May 2016 and which, after 8 months, turns the Pocahontas Parkway highway into the first Globalvia concession in the US market.

The operation has had Chadbourne & Parke as legal counsel and RBC Capital Markets in the financial.

The acquisition has been financed through a combination of Equity and debt, which has been provided by Allianz through long-term bonds with legal advice from White & Case. 

The final amount of this operation is over US$600 million.

Globalvia will manage the highway for 89 years and will be in charge of the operation and maintenance. The highway, which started operating in 2002, has a toll system that combines the traditional toll and the free flow system.

This transaction is a significant reinforcement for Globalvia's presence in the US, where it already had a commercial office in New York, in order to obtain new projects in North America.

Pocahontas Parkway has a length of 16.7 kilometers, two lanes per direction and connects the southern part of the city of Richmond with major traffic arteries in the area, such as I95 and I952. It also provides significant time and distance savings for those who use the bridge that crosses the James River. It is also the main gateway to Richmond International Airport from the South.

Javier Pérez Fortea, CEO of Globalvia said:

"The main challenge we face is to improve current service standards to the maximum. At Globalvia, we work with the long term best interest of the project in mind, seeking to offer the optimal service to our users."