HICL Infrastructure Company Limited, the listed infrastructure investment company advised by InfraRed Capital Partners Limited, has announced the acquisition of a 30% interest in the M1-A1 Link Road (Lofthouse to Bramham) DBFO Road Project from Balfour Beatty plc for £14.5 million (US$21 million).

The project is located in West Yorkshire, England.

The project is a 30 year shadow toll PFI concession for the design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of the motorway. The 30km dedicated highway link which provides strategic connections between the M1 and M62 highways to the south of Leeds and the A1 Trunk Road south of Wetherby. Construction work included 18km of new roads, widening 12km of existing roads, two interchanges, five junctions and 169 structures, including two tunnels, 14 overbridges, 19 underbridges and one viaduct.

In addition to the construction of the M1 - A1 Link Road, the project included the improvement of the M62 east of junction 28 to the Lofthouse Interchange, the M1 from junction 42 to near Belle Isle, and the upgrading of the A1(T) from Micklefield to Bramham.

The project had a CAPEX of 250 million pounds. 

The project reached financial close in March 1996 and the concession is due to end in March 2026. Operation and maintenance of the motorway is undertaken by Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering Limited.

The consideration paid by the HICL Group for the investment was funded from existing cash resources.