On Wednesday, the California High-Speed Rail Authority announced it had executed a co-development agreement with infrastructure Investment consortium Momentum Alliance Partners, to finance future high-speed rail expansion projects.
The agreement establishes the co-development partnership which will evaluate accelerated delivery, private investment and public private partnership opportunities for high-speed rail expansion, officials said.
“Over the past year, the Authority has taken significant steps to reposition California high-speed rail around a more commercially focused and delivery-oriented strategy designed to accelerate expansion into the state’s major population centers,” Ian Choudri, Authority CEO, said. “This agreement reflects growing market confidence in that strategy and the long-term potential of California high-speed rail as a transformative investment in California’s future.”
Choudri said that as construction advances for the state’s high-speed rail project and the authority begins to install track later this year, partnerships like the one with Momentum allow the organization to evaluate how private-sector expertise, financing and delivery models could accelerate expansion of the system.
Momentum Alliance Partners includes internationally recognized firms specializing in infrastructure investment, rail operations, engineering, systems integration and commercial development, including Plenary Americas, CDPQ Infra, Keolis, SNCF Voyageurs, Jacobs, Sener, SYSTRA, Setec, Arup and Steer.
Officials said the agreement establishes a collaborative predevelopment partnership that is intended to evaluate future delivery opportunities through the P3 models. With the agreement signing, the partnership enters a six-month redevelopment and delivery evaluation phase focused on identifying viable strategies to accelerate future expansion.