The VEENIX consortium was selected by Rijkswaterstaat in September 2019, to expand the existing A9 road near Amstelveen from three to four lanes in each direction. VEENIX is responsible for the design, build, finance and maintenance of the project for 14 years. The A9 is the final project of the Schiphol-Amsterdam-Almere corridor (SAA).
The €850m project also involves the construction of a so called ‘sunken highway’ with three roof structures, the expansion of the Schiphol Bridge and 14km of noise pollution barriers. Once complete the road will improve traffic flow, reduce congestion and improve accessibility in the greater Amsterdam area.
VEENIX is supported by Siemens, project delivery firm Count & Cooper, and FCC as contractor. Macquarie also acted as the sole financial advisor and debt arranger to the consortium. Stibbe also advised VEENIX.
Willem Stitselaar, senior managing director and Head of Macquarie Capital in the Benelux region said: “As a leading global developer of infrastructure, we invest in the early development stages to make projects happen. We have led the VEENIX consortium from inception through to financial close, applying best in class design, engineering, project execution and finance, and are proud to be developing this essential infrastructure in the Netherlands.”
The total senior funding requirement for the project is around EUR1bn, which will be provided by several international lenders (Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, DZ Bank, KfW Ipex-Bank, MEAG Munich Ergo, NWB and SMBC).
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to provide EUR350m or 50% of the term loan. The SAA-programme includes the upgrade of a total of 65km of motorways with sections of the A9, “A1/A6” and A6 motorways, all previously supported by the EIB. Works on the A9 BaHo section are expected to commence in early 2020.
The A9 project award follows Macquarie Capital’s previous role as sponsor on the Blankenburg Tunnel PPP in 2018 and the Amsterdam and Breda Court PPP projects.