[미국] 텍사스, 9억2천만 달러 워터파이프 프로젝트

밀뱅크 트위드 해들리 앤 맥클로이(Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP)가 수미토모 미츠이 뱅킹(Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp)을 비롯한 국제 대출기관들에 9억2천만 달러 규모의 비스타 리지 프로젝트(Vista Ridge Project)를 알렸다.

이 프로젝트는 향후 최소 30년간 산 안토니오(San Antonio) 도시에 기존대비 약 20% 이상 물을 더 공급하는 워터 파이프라인 및 취수지 관련 물공급 사업이다.

가니 컨스트럭션(Garney Construction)에 의해 진행에 들어간 프로젝트는 생산, 처리, 조달 및 판매 등을 모두 아우를 예정이며, 142마일에 달하는 트랜스미션 파이프라인(Transmission Pipeline)을 통해 베어 카운티(Bexar County) 북부의 산 안토니오(San Antonio)로 물이 운송되게 된다.

터널링(tunneling) 시공은 오는 12월에 시작될 것으로 예상되며 주요 시공 작업은 내년 1월부터 이뤄질 계획이다.

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Milbank advises lenders on $920M water pipeline project in San Antonio, Texas

Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP has advised international lenders led by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. in connection with financing for the $920 million Vista Ridge Project, a water pipeline and well field that is expected to provide 20% more water to the city of San Antonio for at least the next 30 years.

The water supply project, being built by Garney Construction, will consist of the production, treatment, delivery and sale to San Antonio Water System of up to 50,000 acre-feet per year of potable water. The water will be pumped through the 142 miles Transmission Pipeline to San Antonio in northern Bexar County.

The Milbank team was led by Allan Marks, partner in the Project, Energy and Infrastructure FinanceGroup.

"Water has become the new oil," said Mr. Marks. "With climate change and increased urbanization globally, clean drinking water will increasingly become a more scarce commodity. This is an environmentally responsible project that offers a safe and dependable fresh water source for San Antonio while maintaining the city's water conservation policies."

Mr. Marks added: "This project represents one of the largest public-private partnerships in the water sector in the US and is an example of how shifting risk from public to the private sector in financing, building and operating critical infrastructure benefits the community."

In addition to Mr. Marks, Milbank attorneys involved in the Vista Ridge transaction include Project Finance special counsel Jeff Cohen and associates Jeeseon Ahn, Francis Choi, Miguel Duran, Hao Huang, Eusebius Luk and Tom Quirxtner; Environmental Group partner Matthew Ahrens and associate Meghan Gabriel; Tax special counsel Drew Batkin; and Alternative Investments partner Eric Moser and associates Melissa Ferraroand Carl Ruggiero.

Construction on the tunneling is expected to start in December and major construction will commence January 2017. "Using a design-build approach to construction ensures accelerated project delivery," added Allan Marks.

One of the largest public-private partnerships to close in the water sector in the U.S., the pipeline will be owned for the first 30 years of its use by the Vista Ridge LLC, with ownership passing thereafter to the San Antonio Water System, a public utility owned by the city.

[출처 = Water World / 2016년 11월 7일]