Astaldi seals $2.3 bln loan for third Istanbul bridge

MILAN - Reuters

Italian construction firm Astaldi has secured a $2.3 billion loan for the third bridge in Istanbul, which is being constructed in the northern part of the city. DHA photo

Italian builder Astaldi has announced a $2.3 billion loan through a pool of Turkish banks to finance the construction of the third bridge on the Bosphorus strait has been signed.

“The financial close allowed for the disbursement of the first loan tranche to be used for the bridge’s construction, of which 25 percent of construction has been completed to date,” Astaldi said in a statement yesterday.

The overall value of the investment totals about $2.9 billion, with Astladi owning a 33 percent stake in the project and IC İçtas with 67 percent.

The concession has a 10-year duration with 30 months allocated for construction, it said.

The bridge will be the widest in the world, measuring 60 meters in width, housing 8 motorway lanes (four in each direction) that will be divided by two high-speed rail corridors. It will also be the longest suspension bridge and will achieve another first for its A-shaped pylons standing more than 320 meters tall.