Classification Standards for Government and Social Capital Cooperation Projects of Toll Roads in Sichuan Province (Interim)

　　In order to implement the Notice of the General Office of the State Council Forwarding the Guiding Opinions of the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance on Regulating the Implementation of the New Mechanism for Government and Social Capital Cooperation (Guobanhan [2023] No. 115) and the spirit of relevant documents of the National Development and Reform Commission, further stimulate the vitality of private investment, and accelerate the improvement and sustainable and healthy development of the toll road network system in Sichuan Province, and in light of the actual conditions of Sichuan, the classification standards for government and social capital cooperation projects of toll roads in Sichuan Province with "large investment scale and high construction difficulty" are determined as follows.

　　I. Defining Standards

　　(1) Defining Standard for "Large Investment Scale"

　　A project with a total investment of RMB 10 billion or more is classified as having a "large investment scale."

　　(2) Defining Standard for "High Construction Difficulty"

　　A project meeting any one of the following conditions is classified as having "high construction difficulty":

　　1. For new construction projects, the proportion of the cumulative length of bridges and tunnels to the total mileage of the project (bridge-tunnel ratio) reaches 40% or more; for original road reconstruction and expansion projects, the bridge-tunnel ratio reaches 20% or more;

　　2. The project includes a single bridge structure with a single span of 200 meters or more, or includes a single bridge structure involving water construction of 10 meters or more;

　　3. The project includes a single tunnel structure with a length of 5,000 meters or more, or includes a single tunnel structure with adverse geological conditions such as karst, high gas, high ground stress, and large deformation of soft rock, and with a length of not less than 1,000 meters;

　　4. The project includes a multi-branch (five-branch or more) complex interchange bridge structure;

　　5. The project includes a complex bridge or single tunnel structure constructed jointly with railways, rail transit, or municipal roads, etc.

　　II. Classification Standards

　　(1) Projects for Which Conditions Are Actively Created and Private Enterprise Participation Is Supported

　　Projects that simultaneously meet defining standards (1) and (2) are projects with "large investment scale and high construction difficulty," and conditions shall be actively created to support private enterprise participation.

　　(2) Projects in Which the Equity Share of Private Enterprises Is in Principle Not Less Than 35%

　　For projects that cannot simultaneously meet defining standards (1) and (2), the equity share of private enterprises shall in principle be not less than 35%.

　　III. Other Provisions

　　(1) After the national "List of New Construction (Including Reconstruction and Expansion) Franchise Projects Supporting Private Enterprise Participation (2023 Edition)" is revised, if the classification standards for toll road projects change, the national ** provisions shall apply.

　　(2) These standards shall be interpreted by the Department of Transport of Sichuan Province, and where laws and regulations provide otherwise, such provisions shall prevail. These standards shall come into force on May 16, 2024, and shall be valid for two years.