Chile named a team of local builders, led by Belfi SA, as preferred bidder for El Melón Tunnel DBFOM concession. Their US$110-million low bid beat offers from six others, including Spanish highway developers FCC, ACS-Iridium, Sacyr, and OHL.

In another deal, Chile named Italy’s Astaldi Concessioni as preferred bidder for the US$500-million Punilla dam concession, a water irrigation and electrical power generation project on the Ñuble River. Astaldi will contribute US$397 million for the 45-year concession. Engineering studies will take 18 months and construction will begin in 2018. The La Punilla concession establishes Astaldi in Chile after it won last year, with France’s Vinci, the Santiago airport concession.