Work on the Almanzora motorway has officially stopped as Detea, the company building the 15km connection between the A7 and Purchena has gone bust after failing to renegotiate a 40 million euro loan.
The company is also working on a further 25km stretch of the motorway, and the 1km connection between Albox industrial park and the motorway. Work on all three sections has stopped.
Banks refused to extend loans to the company due to the cancellation of public works contracts for 2012 and 2013 in Andalucía, which meant that after the current projects finish, the company had practically no work on hand.
The company has entered voluntary bankruptcy (suspensión de pagos) in order to renegotiate pending payments and restructure its debts. It is too early to say, according to the Junta, whether the company can continue the work once it emerges from bankruptcy or whether the contracts must be re-tendered to other companies.