Announcement of Ninety Million US Dollars for Water Supply Projects in Colombia on May 27, 1971

INTERNATIONAL BANK FOR • RECONSTRUCTIC)I\J ftd\JD DEVELOPl\~Ef\JT' 1818 H STREET. N.W .. WASHINGTON D. C. 20433 TELEPHONE: EXECUTIVE 3·6360 Bank Press Release No. 71/34 Subject: $90.0 milli~n for water supply May 27, 1971 projects in Colombia The World Bank today announced two loans totaling $90.0 million for water supply projects in Colombia. An $88.0 million loan ,to Empresa de .Acueducto y Alcantarillado de Bogota {EAAB), will help finance the second phase of the long-range master l)lan for expansion of the Bogota water supply system. The second loan, of $2 "O million, is to Emp·resas Publicas Municipales de Palmira (EPMP) for a project to provide Palmira liith improved and expanded water supply and • sewerage facilities. The growth of Colombia's urban pof,ulation from 4.5 millf;on to 12. 7 mil- lion over the past twenty years has placed a great strain o.n urban public services. In Bogota the water supply is one-quarter belc~, .. 2stimated demands resulting in low pressure or interrupted service for 65% of the population. The Colombian authorities are endeavoring to improve water supply and sewerage services. Over the past six years they have developed a program of pre-investment studies for urban water supply and sewerage projects which has led to Bank lending of $14.0 million in June 196R to EAAB and $18.5 million in .June 1970 to the Establecimiento Publico Empresas Munic:l.pales de Cali {EMCALI). The purpose of the new EAAB project is to carry out the second stage of Bogota 's water supply master plan. Its main feature is the diversion of • water from the Chingaza area, 25 miles east of Bogota, through a series of /more Ba·-1k F.R. No. 7l/3!+ ... Cvl'-lmbi:!. - water supply - 2 - tunnels and pipeline sections to the city. The project also includes con- struction of the 260 million cubic yards capacity Chuza dam, a treatment plan~, additions to the Bogota water distributi9~ system, and acquisition·of supply • and operational equipment and engineering services. The project is expected to cover the increase in water demand through 1 r 1982 and also to substantially increase the hydroelectric potential of the Bogota river. The total project cost is e~timated at $103.7 million. The Bank loan will finance about 75% of the total project financing requirements (including interest during construction) of which the foreign exchange portion is estimated at $86 millionu The EPMP project will include a raw water !ntake, a pre-treatment settling tmit, an increase in the capacity of the existing treatment plant, an aiditional treatment plant, storage facilities for 13,000 cubic yards of water, distribution pipes, water meters and other equipment. The project • also includes a. small component to provide urgently needed sewerage and drainage works for the ci~y. The project will cost $3. 8 million. The Bank loan will finance 47% of the total project financing requirements (including interest during construe-· tion), of which the foreign exchange component is estimated at $1.2 million. A Colombian Government loan will finance 28% of project requirements and the remaining 25% will be financed from internally gent~rated funds. The World Bank loan to EAAB (Calle 22-C, No. 40-99, Bogota, D.E., Colombia) is for 30 years, including a seven-year grace period, and the loan to EPMP (Calle 31, No. 24-86, Palmira, Colombia) is for 25 years, including a four-year grace period. Interest will be 7~% per annum. - 0 - • :'