Cross-border team from Norton Rose Fulbright advises Consorcio Panamá Cuarto Puente in US$1.4bn financing for the fourth bridge over the Panama Canal

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright served as legal counsel to Consorcio Panamá Cuarto Puente, a consortium comprised of China Harbour Engineering Company and China Communications Construction Company, in a US$1.42bn project financing for the fourth bridge over the Panama Canal.

The transaction includes the securitization of government-backed payment rights known as IPTs and the issuance of zero coupon senior secured notes. It is the first financing involving IPTs in the international capital markets.

The project includes a cable-stayed bridge over the Panama Canal and two road interchanges, one to the west connecting the Pan-American Highway to the city of Arraiján and one to the east connecting the North Corridor and Avenida Omar Torrijos in Panama City. The bridge will have a height of 75 meters over water level with 350-meter spacing between its supportive columns to allow for the passage of current and post-Panamax vessels. The total length of the main bridge is approximately 845 meters between expansion joints.

Norton Rose Fulbright's São Paulo office led the team with support from London and the US.

The São Paulo team included Daniel Spencer, Caspar Davey, Cameron Royse and Arthur dos Santos. The London team included David Shearer, Rae Parsons, Matthew Hodkin, Regina Chan and Fareed Muhammed. The US team included Kim Caine (Washington, DC), Patrick Dolan, Kevin Prokup (New York), Arthur Kimball-Stanley (Austin) and Jason Goolsby (Dallas).