The second bridge between Brazil and Paraguay, Ponte da Integração, is 84% complete and should be inaugurated in the coming months. This Friday (3), the presidents of both countries, Jair Bolsonaro and Mário Abdo Benítez, participated in a ceremony to visit the enterprise, in Foz do Iguaçu (PR).
The bridge has been built since 2019, in a partnership between Itaipu Binacional, commanded by Brazil and Paraguay, and the government of the state of Paraná. The entire investment, around R$ 320 million, is being financed by the energy company, and the work is being carried out by the Paraná Department of Highways (DER/PR). It will connect Foz do Iguaçu to the Paraguayan Presidente Franco, will be 760 meters long and will have a span of 470 meters, the largest in Latin America. There will be two single lanes with 3.6 meters wide, three meters shoulder and 1.7 meter sidewalk on the sides.
Brazil and Paraguay are already connected by the Friendship Bridge, between Foz do Iguaçu and Ciudad del Este, opened in 1965. It continues to be the main logistical corridor between Brazil and Paraguay, but it has been overloaded for years. In addition to the movement of people between Foz and Cidade del Este, the bridge concentrates truck traffic. With the new connection, Ponte da Amizade will be exclusively for light vehicles and tourist buses, while Ponte da Integração will receive cargo transport. At the end of the work, it will be managed by the government of Paraná.
“This work has 80% progress and there is 100 meters to go to join again in another work that generates integration between our peoples”, celebrated the Paraguayan president, Mário Abdo Benítez. He also recalled the construction of a third bridge connecting the two countries, this time between Carmelo Peralta, in Paraguay, and Porto Murtinho, in Mato Grosso do Sul. This work also has part of its execution financed by Itaipu Binacional.
In his speech, President Jair Bolsonaro highlighted the role of Itaipu in carrying out various works. “More than a generator of renewable energy, it is a company that runs works”, he said. He exemplified the financing of the extension of the runway of the International Airport of Foz do Iguaçu, in large part also financed by Itaipu, and which promises to expand the offer of international flights to the region.
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Earlier, still in Paraná, the President Jair Bolsonaro visited a stretch of the BR-487Estrada Boiadeira, in Umuarama, which is undergoing restoration, implementation and paving work, with investments of R$ 232.8 million.
The president returns to the federal capital in the early evening.
