French construction firm Eiffage has been selected by French railway manager Réseau Ferré de France (RFF) as the preferred bidder for a €3.4bn ($4.56bn) contract to design, build, maintain and fund the Brittany-Loire Valley high-speed line in France.
Other firms that competed for the deal included Bouygues and Vinci Concessions.
As an extension to the existing high-speed line between Paris and Connerré (20 km to the East of Le Mans), the public-private partnership project includes building 214km of new lines, including 182km of high-speed line.
After the contract is signed in the first half of 2011, Eiffage will build and maintain the line for 25 years and will receive public funding as well as allowances from RFF.
The work will be complete by 2016.
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