THE deal to finance the £1.86 billion Mersey Gateway project has won two prestigious international awards.

It has been named as Europe’s infrastructure deal of the year at the Project Finance International Awards and IJ Global’s European road deal of the year 2014.

The deal saw Halton Council appoint Merseylink consortium as the project company to build, finance and operate the iconic Mersey Gateway bridge.

Halton Council leader Cllr Rob Polhill said: “These awards are fantastic recognition for everybody who has been a part of the project over the years.

“As one of the smaller local authorities in the UK, our successful journey to make the new crossing a reality, bringing benefits right across Halton and the north west is remarkable and we could not have done it without support from our advisors KPMG and DLA Piper.”

An innovative combination of combined commercial and bank finance, the deal was an accumulation of more than 20 years’ hard work and dedication to make the vital new crossing a reality.

Keeping the project affordable was the project mantra, and the deal delivered savings of £250 million under the budget set by Government in 2011.

Richard Threlfall, UK head, infrastructure, building and construction at KPMG said: “These awards are thoroughly deserved for Halton and the Mersey Gateway team.

“Halton achieved a superb result by properly defining what they wanted from the outset and then targeting the best price possible for its delivery.

“The Mersey Gateway is an important project not only for Halton but also for the whole region.”

The budget savings were partly delivered by the flexible approach that Halton Council took to procurement, which allowed the private sector, the Merseylink consortium, to deliver design and build innovations that delivered enhanced value for money.

The Mersey Gateway was the first project to utilise the IUK Guarantees programme on the bond element financing, encouraging new investors into the market.

Liam Cowell, partner at DLA Piper said: "This is an iconic project which will boost the local road network and improve the accessibility for people, the business community in the region and beyond.

“DLA Piper is honoured to have supported Halton Council and the Mersey Gateway crossing board from the early planning stages, through a complex procurement process and reaching a successful financial close in Spring 2014.

“We are in no doubt that this project will be recognised within the project finance industry as a benchmark and one of the most innovative projects of recent years."

The project collected IJ Global’s European Road Deal on February 19 at the National History Museum, London adding to the European Infrastructure Deal of the Year award received from Project Finance International earlier in the month at The Hilton Hotel in London.