This Monday (3), construction of the construction site on the right bank began.
Six months after construction began on the second bridge between Brazil and Paraguay over the Paraná River, between Foz do Iguaçu and Presidente Franco, a municipality neighboring Ciudad del Este, works on the right bank are beginning to gain the expected pace. After several meetings and planning involving institutions directly linked to the work, all obstacles to customs procedures were finally overcome.
As a consequence of this, this Monday (3), there was the first transport of civil construction inputs to the Paraguayan side. The material will be used to assemble the construction site on that side of the bridge, which is entirely paid for by the Itaipu plant. The work will guarantee a new era for the economy of the entire region.
The next stage will be the construction of the cofferdam for the bridge's main pillar. In practice, this means that, from now on, the transport of materials and inputs between Brazil and Paraguay for this purpose will be routine. The expectation is that the work on the Paraguayan side will acquire the desired pace and match the progress of the Brazilian side, which is well advanced.
There were months of negotiations between several partner institutions, such as the Federal Revenue, Federal Highway Police, DNIT, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, government of Paraná and Itaipu, which is financing the new connection. The Coordination Board is following the work step by step.
In addition to all these efforts, a decree signed by President Mario Abdo Benítez, known as Marito, last week, considering the work on the Brazil-Paraguay Integration Bridge to be of national interest, also helped to unlock the bureaucratic process.
Ready in June 2022
If everything goes as expected, the second bridge will be ready in June 2022. All types of vehicles will pass through it. The new connection will relieve traffic from the Friendship Bridge, also over the Paraná River, which will no longer have truck traffic.
Heavy trucks, which currently travel along the tourist corridor and central roads of Foz do Iguaçu, will now use Perimetral Leste, a connection between the new bridge and BR-277. It will be necessary to build a new Dry Port, but the topic is already well advanced.
Other works
In 2021, another important project for tourism and regional development, with funding from Itaipu, should also be completed: the expansion of the arrival and departure runway at Foz do Iguaçu International Airport.
In addition to the airport, Itaipu is also reallocating resources obtained from savings in expenses without adherence to the plant's mission in other structural works, such as the modernization of the Minister Costa Cavalcanti Hospital and the completion of the municipal market, as well as in new tourist routes inside and outside of the plant.
One of them will be the circuit that will connect the future market to the plant, passing through places that date back to the time of construction. In October, Gramadão will undergo revitalization and will be transformed into a large leisure park.
The Brazilian general director of Itaipu, General Joaquim Silva e Luna, wants speed in all announced works. “Foz do Iguaçu deserves to be equipped with adequate infrastructure for the well-being of its people and tourists who visit the city”. And he adds: “this is our commitment. Let’s leave a legacy for this and future generations.”
What is it
The Integration Bridge will connect Foz do Iguaçu (Brazil) to Presidente Franco (Paraguay) and will help alleviate heavy vehicle traffic on the Friendship Bridge, currently the only connection between the two countries over the Paraná River.
The new structure will be 760 meters long and have a free span of 470 meters, with two 120 meter high towers. The lane will be simple, 3.7 meters wide on each side, 3 meter shoulder and 1.70 meter sidewalk.
The planned investment is R$463 million, of which R$323 million will be used on the bridge and R$140 million on the Perimetral Leste works, a connection between the new bridge and BR-277. The State Government is responsible for managing the work.
