Ecovia Toll Road

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The Concessionaria Ecovia Caminho do Mar (Ecovia) was awarded a concession contract by the government of the state of Parana in 1997. The bidding process was competitive and the award criteria was the quantity of km of access highways to be rehabilitated by the sponsors. Ecovia was a subsidiary of Grupo CR Almeida, one of the largest Brazilian construction groups. Ecovia is reponsible for rehabilitating an operating the toll road for a 24-year period. Ecovia was responsible for three highways in the State of Parana. The first is a 85.7 Km piece, which extends from the city of Curitiba and the Paranagua Port (and it is part of the highway BR-277). The second is a 32 Km piece, which extends from the city of Matinhos to the highway BR-277. The third is a 19 Km piece, which extends from the highway BR-277 to the Praia do Leste (and it is known as highway PR-407). Ecovia invested US$ 23 million in the first year of the concession. Though the estimated traffic flow in 1998 was 11,443 vehicles, the actual volume was 9,000 vehicles; by 2021, the estimated flow is 24,795. In June 1998, when the initial rehabilitation works were completed, the concessionaire started charging tolls. As of August 1998, the concession contract was under renegotiation. As the state of Parana government decided to reduce the toll rates, the concessionaire stopped its investment plans and only the rehabilitation works were implemented. In 2000, the original toll rates were restablished and the Ecovia resumed its investment plans. In early 2002, the holding company Grupo Primav EcoRodovias SA (Primav EcoRodovias) was created . Primav EcoRodovias' shareholders are Grupo CR Almeida (65%) and the Italian group Impregilo (35%).As of 2003, Primav EcoRodovias was controlling 99.99% of the total capital of Ecovia and two other toll-road concessions in Brazil (Ecovias-Imigrantes and Ecosul). In 2003, after the concessionaries that operate in State of Parana failed to reach an agreement with the government to lower the toll rates, after the concessionaries that operate in State of Parana failed to reach an agreement with the government to lower the toll rates, the government of the State of Parana enacted a statute to cancel the concession and return the management and operation of the highways to the State. In December 2003, a Federal Court declared that the cancellation should be preceded by an administrative process in order to define the due compensation to the company. In January 2004, the governor of the State of Parana enacted an executive decree declaring that the State was authorized to take the voting shares of Ecovia. The government stated that the expropriation would not take place if the company agreed to reduce the toll rates. As o January 2004, the issue was pending final judicial decision. In April 2004 the federal court ruled that the concessionaire should still operate, thereby overturning the state court decree that took back the concession contract. The concessionaire and the state government were to negotiate toll rates but the contract was not in question.