The Panamanian government signed a $2.2 million railway consultancy contract with the American engineering firm AECOM to update the Panama-David-Costa Rica border Railway Master Plan.
The contract was signed by the Secretary of the Railway, Henry Faarup, and the country manager of AECOM Panama, Aileen Flasz at the end of December, with President Mulino as a witness.
The plan comprises technical studies, conceptual design, demand analysis, budget projections, and implementation methods, according to the Panamanian government. The pre-feasibility study for a priority 150-kilometer segment is also covered, as is the evaluation of alternate routes across the Panama Canal, such as a bridge or a tunnel other than the one being built for Metro Line 3.
Among the companies interested in bidding for the future tender for the project are Power China and the China Construction Company Corporation. China has been linked to the evolution of this mega-project since 2019, when Chinese company Railway Design Corporation (CRDC) carried out a Feasibility Study. This study estimated that the construction of the railway would involve an investment of $4.1 billion. The train would travel at a speed of up to 160 kilometers per hour and would transport both goods and people.
About the contract with AECOM
The contract for updating & elaborating the Master Plan has been divided into three phases (one of them optional), to be executed within a fixed period of 210 calendar days.
Phase 1 consists of the Evaluation of criteria and preliminary analysis. Phase 2 includes the development of the master plan with demand studies, conceptual designs and budget estimates; and the optional phase 3 covers the prefeasibility study with 20% engineering progress for a specific section.
Payments are divided by phase, according to deliverables: USD 1,117,080.00 for phase 1; USD 1,117,080.00 for phase 2; and USD 685,709.50 for phase 3.