LatAm toll roads feel cash flow pinch

  • Several toll road concessionaires in Latin America have suffered a sharp decline in revenues as a result of travel and trade restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, but they may receive help from governments before the end of the year.
  • In Colombia, where tolls for freight vehicles were waived until May 31 to guarantee the continued supply of goods, the government is expected to reimburse toll road operators for lost revenues in July, but it is not expected to provide additional compensation for the decline in revenues beyond the availability payments already outlined in the concession contracts.
  • In the meantime, concessionaires face downgrades as the drop in revenues forces them to dip into their cash reserves. Fitch Ratings downgraded Ruta al Mar to BB+ from BBB- and put a negative outlook on the BBB- rating for PacĂ­fico 3 in April.
  • Fitch expects traffic to return to 2019's levels in 2021 in most countries in Latin America but not before 2023 in Mexico. As a result, the rating agency downgraded Concesionaria Mexiquense to BBB from BBB+ and put a negative outlook on Red de Carreteras de Occidente (RCO). In Panama, it cut ENA Este to BB- from BB and ENA Norte Trust to BB+ from BBB-.

(Source: Latinfinance)