IDB Invest, the private sector institution of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, provides local currency financing of $260.9 million Colombian pesos (approximately $86 million dollars) to the Concessionaire Ruta del Cacao S.A.S. comprised of Cintra Infrastructures Colombia, Ashmore Group and Mercantil Colpatria.

The operation will allow the construction, operation and maintenance of one of the highways of the Fourth Generation highway concessions program (4G) of Colombia, aimed at improving the country's integration and competitiveness.

The highway will improve the connection between Bucaramanga and Barrancabermeja – two of the main cities of the department of Santander – with the municipality of Yondó, in the department of Antioquia. Bucaramanga has approximately one million inhabitants and Barrancabermeja is home to the largest oil refinery in the country, with a very important economic activity in the region. The main objective of the highway is to improve the mobility conditions of the highway corridor, key to the economic development of the area.

The project has an approximate cost of 1.7 billion Colombian pesos and is part of the second wave of the 4G program, awarded by the National Infrastructure Agency (ANI, acronym in Spanish) of Colombia, to improve highway connectivity in the country through public-private partnerships. This highway concession will be executed in a period of between 25 and 29 years, has a length of 190.3 kilometers and includes the construction of 16 bridges, two viaducts, five toll stations and two tunnels.

The participation of IDB Invest has been essential to complete the financing, due to the limits of the local banking financial market and the size of the investments and the concentration of the portfolio in the highway concession sector. IDB Invest has worked together with the National Development Bank (FDN, acronym in Spanish) in the development of a local currency funding line, which allows Colombian pesos to be provided to infrastructure projects.

About IDB Invest
IDB Invest, the private sector institution of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, is a multilateral development bank committed to supporting Latin America and Caribbean businesses. It finances sustainable enterprises and projects to achieve financial results that maximize economic, social and environmental development for the region. With a current portfolio of $11.2 billion under management and 330 clients in 23 countries, IDB Invest works across sectors to provide innovative financial solutions and advisory services that meet the evolving demands of its clients. As of November 2017, IDB Invest is the trade name of the Inter-American Investment Corporation.

About Concesionario Ruta del Cacao
Concesionario Ruta del Cacao, will lead the design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of Highway BBY (Bucaramanga-Barrancabermeja-Yondó) in Colombia. It aspires to become a corporate benchmark among highway concessionaires in Colombia through the implementation of the best and most reliable alternative ground travel between the municipalities of Bucaramanga-Barrancabermeja-Yondó, thus improving the quality of life of the inhabitants of the Department of Santander in Colombia.