The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Bank of Ireland (BOI) have funded the first road PPP in Ireland since 2007.

The pair each contributed €72.mn to the project, with the BOI’s portion being covered by the Irish government through its National Pensions Reserve Fund (NPRF). The total project cost is €282mn, with the additional finance coming in the form of equity. The debt finance has a two-year tenor, while the pricing remains confidential.

The borrower is BAM PPP PGGM Infrastructure Coöperatie, a joint venture between construction company the Royal BAM Group and the Dutch pensions giant PGGM. Law firm Norton Rose advised on the project.

The road will run between Dublin, Wicklow and Wexford in the southeast of Ireland. It’s the latest in a series of road projects the EIB has funded in the country (albeit the first to have this structure), and a banker involved in the transaction tells GTR that there is one other – an upgrade of the N17 in the west of Ireland – under review.

However, our source says he’s unsure whether the spate of transport transactions will encourage the international commercial banking community to return to Ireland. “This is the first project which has no element of traffic risk,” he tells GTR, referring to the fact that the commercial debt is covered by the NPRF, and won’t rely on tolling. “We’re willing to support road projects across Ireland, but I don’t know whether the commercial sector will feel the same.”