The Paraguayan access road to Puente de la Integración, between Presidente Franco and Foz de Yguazú, is still not ready, although the international bridge over the Paraná River was completed in August 2023. The project’s six contracts rose from G. 804.241 billion to G. 926.724 billion—an increase of G. 122.483 billion, or 15.23%.
The works are part of the Corredor Metropolitano del Este, financed by the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) and carried out by Paraguay’s Ministry of Public Works and Communications (MOPC). The overall project calls for an investment of US$212 million and includes urban and rural access roads, border-control facilities, the cargo terminal of the National Navigation and Ports Administration (ANNP), and a new bridge over the Monday River.
Five contracts received increases of between 16% and 20%. The 24.1-kilometer urban access road in Presidente Franco rose from G. 136.157 billion to G. 162.742 billion and has been completed. Rural Lot 1 rose from G. 289.659 billion to G. 337.062 billion; Rural Lot 2 rose from G. 162.949 billion to G. 194.921 billion.
The primary zone, which handles part of border control, increased from G. 42.997 billion to G. 51.596 billion. The ANNP cargo terminal rose from G. 39.726 billion to G. 47.649 billion. The contract for the bridge over the Monday River was the only one without an increase and remains at G. 132.753 billion.
Despite the increases, three components have already been completed: the urban access road, the civil works for the primary zone, covering 6,685.3 square meters, and the cargo terminal, covering 11,393.05 square meters. The primary zone was completed on March 3, 2025, and the terminal on June 15 of the same year.
Rural Lot 2, covering 11.7 kilometers, reached 99% completion and is estimated to be finished by November 2026. Rural Lot 1, covering 19.1 kilometers, is 85% complete; 17 kilometers have already been built, and delivery is expected in February 2027.
The main outstanding component is the bridge over the Monday River, which is 560 meters long and only 45% physically complete. Earthworks and the abutments have been completed, foundations have reached 95%, and piers 83%. Completion is expected in April 2027.
In practice, the full opening of Puente de la Integración will depend on completion of these access roads and integration between the international bridge, customs infrastructure, and Paraguay’s road network. As a result, the structure completed in 2023 still cannot operate as a complete cross-border connection.