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The San Antonio Port Company (EPSA) confirmed that the financing strategy for the Outer Port project will be defined during 2026. For now, the state-owned company ratified the acquisition of a USD 50 million loan from the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), an amount that will allow the enabling works for the breakwater to begin.
It is worth remembering that the initiative has a total planned investment of USD 4.450 billion, of which USD 2.500 billion will be contributed by the private sector, while the remaining USD 1.950 billion will come from state financing.
With the recently announced loan, USD 1.900 billion is still unknown as to what type of formula will be used for state investment.
After the loan signing ceremony between EPSA and CAF, PortalPortuario spoke with Sergio Merino, chairman of the board of the San Antonio state-owned company, who addressed the financing challenges presented by the initiative, in addition to setting deadlines to know the definitive structure with which the project will be financed.
When asked about the modality in which the investment will be executed, Merino did not provide details, however, he explained "one of the challenges this administration has is the financing of the Outer Port works. We have a 50 million dollar loan, that only allows us to finance the enabling works."
Furthermore, the chairman of the board assured that for now, they are still studying the most convenient way to finance this project.
"We are working with the government and with different people to structure financing for the breakwater because we need almost 2 billion dollars. To the question of whether we have that closed, no, we don't have it closed," he affirmed.
Regarding the process, Merino was clear in pointing out that "in this there are two instances: first, when I must have the financing closed, and second, when I have to have the funds available. Obviously, it doesn't make much sense to have the resources available for disbursements that I will have to make in three, four, five, or six years from now."
"Then, we have to know if we are going to do this with closed financing for the entire period or if we are going to finance it little by little. That is something that is currently under study, it is on the table, there is no definitive decision regarding the financing structure," added the head of the EPSA board.
Regarding deadlines, Merino stated that "probably, during the course of this year, we should have clarity regarding what the financing strategy we will follow will be."
As a detail and institutionally, EPSA reported on the mechanism they are considering to complete the investment. "The San Antonio Port Company is evaluating different financing alternatives, including debt, multilateral financing, bond issuance, and other complementary formulas that allow for structuring a robust and sustainable long-term scheme. The definitions on this matter will be communicated when they are adopted," he specified.
According to CAF, the recently announced loan adjusts to EPSA's budgetary needs for the 2026-2027 period and that - subsequently - the loan could be extended up to a maximum of USD 150 million in a first instance.
Source: Portal Portuario
