Bakwena Toll Route:
A Testament of Efficient and Safe Travel:
Bakwena Toll Route, a crucial arterial route in South Africa, provides thousands of commuters daily with safer, more efficient roads. The Bakwena team also assists in roadside emergencies and manages toll collections
Route Description:
The Bakwena Toll Route is composed of two significant sections. The N1 stretching over 90 kilometres, runs northwards from Tshwane to Bela-Bela (Warmbaths). The second section, the N4 spans an impressive 295 kilometres from Tshwane, westwards through Rustenburg and Zeerust, extending up to the Botswana border.
A Brief History of the Bakwena Toll Route:
On the 4th of October 2000, Bakwena signed a thirty-year Concession Contract with the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL). The contract aimed to construct, manage, maintain, and upgrade the N1 and N4 roads.
Key Stakeholders
Bakwena initially received support from a robust group of local and international construction companies. Financial institutions also played a significant role in supporting the project.
The sponsor-group was spearheaded by Dragados, a global leader in operating toll road and transport infrastructure concessions, and Murray & Roberts, an established South African construction company. The South African Infrastructure Fund and COFIDES (Spain) were the major non-sponsor shareholders.
Construction Phase:
The initial construction works were executed by a design and construct joint venture, named Platinum JV. This joint venture comprised Dragados of Spain and local firms such as Murray & Roberts, Concor, and Wilson Bailey Holmes-Ovcon (WBHO).
Following the completion of the initial construction works and the establishment of traffic patterns, the construction shareholders divested and sold their shareholding to the remaining financial institutional shareholders.
Toll Road Operations
The toll road is currently operated and maintained by Pt Operational Services (Pty) Ltd.
Funding of Bakwena Toll Route:
A Testament of Efficient and Safe Travel:
The private sector financed the initial Bakwena project. The shareholders pledged to pay R700 million, and five local and international banking institutions set up the R2.3 billion structured lending facilities.
The below banking institutions played a pivotal role in orchestrating the lending facility to meet the initial funding requirements of the Bakwena project.
In June 2009, Nedbank Capital took the lead in successfully refinancing the project, with ABSA Bank Limited stepping in as the funder. This refinancing endeavour resulted in a significant shift in the shareholding structure. The project’s foreign and local contractors decided to divest their shares, effectively transferring their ownership stakes to the remaining financial institutional shareholders.