The government has licensed a private company to construct and operate a 206-kilometer highway linking Hamedan and Kermanshah —the capital cities of two adjacent provinces with the same name. This is the first time the government grants the private sector full participation in development of road projects, requiring the concessionaire to meet all construction, operational and maintenance costs until full recovery of the amount, Mehr news agency reported on Monday. The contract’s term is 18.5 years including 3.5 years for the construction phase and 15 years for operation.
