Denver RTD picks Fluor team for Eagle project

The Denver Regional Transportation District (RTD) has selected Denver Transit Partners (DTP), a team jointly led by Fluor and Macquarie Capital Group, as the preferred bidder to finance, design, build, operate, and maintain the Eagle P3 commuter rail project in the Denver metropolitan area. Fluor said it will “book the project into backlog when the contract is signed and all financing has been secured.” That’s expected to occur before the end of 2010.

In addition to Fluor and Macquarie Capital, the DTP team also includes Balfour Beatty Rail, Ames Construction, Hyundai-Rotem USA (Hyundai), Alternative Concepts, Inc. (ACI), Fluor/HDR Global Design Consultants, PBS&J, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Interfleet Technology, Systra, and Wabtec.

The Eagle Project, a public/private partnership, is a key element of RTD’s 12-year, multibillion-dollar FasTracks plan to operate new regional and light rail services throughout the eight-county area. It includes the East Corridor, a new 23.6-mile commuter rail line from Union Station to Denver International Airport; the Gold Line: an 11.2-mile commuter rail line from Union Station to Wheat Ridge; and a two-mile initial segment of the Northwest Rail Corridor. It will require approximately 50 electric multiple-unit (EMU) railcars and a maintenance facility.

Fluor said its part of the project includes a 50% share of the engineering, procurement, and construction contract; a 33% share in the operations and maintenance contract; and a 10% equity share in the concession’s “special purpose vehicle” that will raise the financing to fund the project.

“This is a significant, prestigious and strategic selection,” said Patrick Flaherty, head of Fluor’s Infrastructure business. “We expect this to be the first of many public-private partnership transit projects procured under the availability method in the U.S. in the coming years. We are delighted to have been selected by the Denver RTD. Our entire team is looking forward to helping the RTD realize its FasTracks vision and we are committed to working closely with local businesses and other stakeholders to involve them in the project and increase the long-term competitiveness of the Denver area.”

Balfour Beatty Rail’s roles in the project are similar to Flour’s: a 50% share of the engineering, procurement, and construction contract as well as a 33% share in the operations and maintenance contract. “The Eagle P3 Project will be the largest dollar value project any Balfour Beatty company has been awarded in the U.S., as well as the first public-private partnership we have teamed on,” said Jim Moynihan, president and CEO of Balfour Beatty Rail. “It will be transformational not only for our U.S. transit business, but also for the citizens of Denver. We look forward to a safe and successful partnership with our team members and the community to deliver on this prestigious project.”