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Project Profile: I-4 Ultimate

I-4 Ultimate

photo credit: Florida Department of Transportation

Location

Orlando, Florida

Project Sponsor / Borrower

Florida Department of Transportation

I-4 Mobility Partners

Program Areas

Project FinanceTolling and PricingTIFIA

Mode

Highway / Express Lanes

Description

The I-4 Ultimate project is the reconstruction and widening of 21 miles of I-4 from west of Kirkman Road in Orange County, Florida through downtown Orlando to east of State Road 434 in Seminole County. The project will:

  • Fully reconstruct the existing general purpose lanes
  • Add four express toll lanes in the median
  • Reconstruct 15 major interchanges
  • Reconstruct, construct, or widen 140 bridges

The existing general purpose lanes, which range from three to four lanes in each direction are approximately 50 years old and experience significant levels of congestion.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will set toll rates and collect all revenue. Access and egress will be provided at five exchange areas (crossover zones) and by direct connectors at major intersections.

The project is being procured as a 40-year design-build-finance-operate-maintain availability payment concession, with the private partner receiving milestone and completion payments during and immediately following construction completion. These milestone payments and availability payments during the operational period are not tied to toll revenue collections and will come from a variety of regional, state, and federal revenue sources.
Cost

$2,877 million

Funding Sources

Senior bank debt - $484 million

TIFIA Tranche A loan - $127.3 million

TIFIA Tranche B loan - $822.2 million

Equity contribution - $103 million

FDOT milestone payments during construction - $1.035 billion

TIFIA capitalized interest and interest income - $306 million

Project Delivery / Contract Method

Design-build-finance-operate-maintain Availability Payment Concession (40 years)

Private Partner

I-4 Mobility Partners

  • John Laing Investments Limited (29% equity partner, 50% project owner)
  • Skanska Infrastructure Development (71% equity partner, 50% project owner)

Design-build joint venture

  • Skanska USA Civil Southeast, Inc. (40%)
  • Granite Construction Company (30%)
  • Lane Construction Corporation (30%)

Design joint venture

  • HDR Engineering
  • Jacobs Engineering Group

Operations and maintenance - Infrastructure Corporation of America

Project Advisors / Consultants

To Sponsor (FDOT)

  • Nossaman - Legal Advisor
  • KPMG - Financial Advisor
  • Reynolds Smith and Hill - Technical Advisor

To the Borrower (I-4 Mobility Partners)

  • Société Générale - Financial Advisor
  • Ashurst - Legal Advisor

To USDOT TIFIA JPO

  • TIFIA Legal Advisor - Hawkins Delafield & Wood
  • TIFIA Financial Advisor - Scully Capital Services, Inc.
Lenders

USDOT TIFIA
6-bank club (senior bank debt)

  • Société Générale
  • MUFG
  • Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
  • KfW-IPEX Bank
  • Svensk Exportkredit
  • Credit Agricole
Duration / Status

I-4 Mobility Partners were selected by FDOT as the preferred bidder on April 23, 2014.

Construction began in February 2015 and is expected to be substantially complete in 2021.

TIFIA Credit Assistance

Direct Loan - $949 million

The TIFIA loan is structured in two tranches:

  • $127.3 million of TIFIA debt (TIFIA Tranche A) will be repaid in full by the second Final Acceptance Payment from FDOT in 2021; and
  • $822.2 million of TIFIA debt (TIFIA Tranche B) which is repaid from the Availability Payments made by FDOT through final maturity in 2052.
Financial Status / Financial Performance

Financial close occurred and TIFIA credit agreement was executed on September 4, 2014. Milestone payments during construction (2015-2019) will total $1,035 million. The balance of FDOT's capital payments will be made in 2020 and 2021 totaling $688 million.

Innovations
  • The project includes numerous aesthetic treatments, including a signature pedestrian bridge, accent lighting, fountain illumination, art sculptures and monuments, and other architectural treatments
  • The project incorporates 25 approved technical concepts that exceed the minimum requirements established by FDOT for basic configuration, project scope, and design criteria. These include innovations in traffic flow, safety, community connections, sustainability, and use of technology. Further detail can be found on the project website.
Related Links / Articles

FDOT Project Website

FDOT I-4 Express PD&E Study

Contacts

Loreen C. Bobo, P.E.
I-4 Ultimate Construction Program Manager
Florida Department of Transportation
Tel: (386) 943-5541
loreen.bobo@dot.state.fl.us

 

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