Cuatrecasas acts in refinancing of Pamplona-Cúcuta project

Cuatrecasas, through its Bogotá office, has advised Banco Santander, JPMorgan Chase Bank and a group of financial institutions on the refinancing of the Pamplona – Cúcuta project, part of Sacyr’s fourth generation (4G) road concession programme in Colombia.

The project will improve the country’s road connectivity, specifically on the border crossing to Venezuela, thereby boosting the socio-economic development of north-eastern Colombia and reducing travel times and transport costs, directly impacting more than 782,000 people in the region.

Thanks to this transaction, Unión Vial Río Pamplonita obtained long-term financing of US $642 million that will be used for the development, construction, operation, maintenance, social, property and environmental management of the Pamplona – Cúcuta road in Norte de Santander.

The closing of the transaction has been particularly complex due to its contractual structure, the multiplicity of sections and the number of financiers involved, which amounts to 10.

This refinancing obtained the social seal of Moody’s ESG Solutions and was structured through the issuance of a US$400 million bond, a US$165 million multi-tranche loan and a loan in Colombian pesos for an equivalent value of US$77 million. This is Sacyr’s third social bond issue in Colombia.

Other participating firms were Castro Leiva Rendón, as legal advisors under Colombian law to the concessionaire and the sponsor; Clifford Chance, as legal advisors to the lenders under New York law; King & Spalding, as legal advisors under New York law to the concessionaire and the sponsor; and Garrigues Colombia, as legal advisors under Colombian law to BlackRock.

Cuatrecasas’ team was led by partner Manuel Quinche (pictured left), with support from partner Ana María Sánchez (pictured right), senior associate Natalia Arango, and associates Felipe Londoño, Laura Salazar, Natalia Serrano and Sara Gómez.