The government of Bahia has already disbursed R$ 160 million for the largest bridge over the sea in Latin America even before the official start of construction. The project, promised since 2009, envisions R$ 3.3 billion in public funds over ten years and will be executed by Chinese companies under a 35-year concession model.

Written by Maria Heloisa Barbosa Borges

Published on 22/05/2026 at 19:25

Updated on 22/05/2026 at 19:26

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The largest bridge over the sea in Latin America received this week the first shipment of materials from China: 800 tons of parts in 44 containers that traveled 17,000 kilometers from the Port of Shanghai to Salvador. The Salvador-Itaparica Bridge will span 12.4 kilometers over the Bay of All Saints, with a total investment of R$ 6.9 billion in a public-private partnership with the Chinese companies CCCC and CRCC. According to NSC, the government of Bahia has already disbursed R$ 160 million and expects to start the foundations on June 4.

The largest bridge over the sea in Latin America is finally materializing in Bahia after more than two decades of promises. On Monday (18), a ship from China docked at the Port of Salvador with over 800 tons of materials for the Salvador-Itaparica Bridge, valued at 3.5 million dollars: Bailey beam panels, metal structures, support bolts, and locking pins that will be used to assemble a temporary platform over the water. Governor Jerônimo Rodrigues personally inspected the cargo and confirmed that the works of the concessionaire formed by CCCC and CRCC should begin in early June 2026.

On Tuesday (19), the delivery of 3,900 tons of steel pipes began, equivalent to 400 trucks, intended for the first stages of implementing the work platform at sea. A 60-ton crane has already been positioned in São Roque do Paraguaçu, in the municipality of Maragogipe, where one of the construction sites will be installed. The largest bridge over the sea in Latin America enters the phase of physical mobilization after years in which the project existed only on paper, in renegotiated contracts and campaign speeches. The expected completion date is June 2031.

The R$ 160 million spent before the start of the works

Bridge construction should start in June.

The Extraordinary Secretariat of the West Road System Salvador-Itaparica Bridge, created at the end of 2025 to manage the project, has already disbursed R$ 159.96 million in March 2026. This amount corresponds to the first installment provided for in the concession contract signed between the government of Bahia and the Chinese companies CCCC and CRCC, and represents 96% of all expenses paid by the secretariat since its creation.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

What the bridge will change in Bahia’s mobility

Currently, those who need to go from Salvador to Itaparica depend on the ferry boat system. The sea crossing takes about an hour, but the wait in line can range from 60 minutes on quiet days to more than three hours during busy periods. With the largest sea bridge in Latin America, the journey that now takes hours will be completed in just a few minutes by road, completely transforming the dynamics between Salvador, Itaparica Island, and the Recôncavo Baiano.

The impact goes beyond mobility. The bridge is expected to reconfigure the urban growth axis of the entire Metropolitan Region of Salvador and the Recôncavo in Bahia, opening areas of the island for real estate, tourism, and commercial development. The project, led by CCCC and CRCC, also includes a new highway in Vera Cruz and the duplication of sections of BA-001. The forecast is to generate around 7,000 jobs during construction.

The logistics of building at sea with materials from China

The construction of the largest sea bridge in Latin America requires a logistical operation that starts from the other side of the world. The shipment that arrived on Monday departed from the Port of Shanghai on March 30, covering approximately 17,000 kilometers to Salvador. The 1,550 items transported in the 44 containers are considered essential to assemble the temporary platform that will support the circulation of machines, workers, and equipment in the future execution areas.

The materials will be sent to two locations: Maragogipe, where a construction site will be set up in the cove, and Vera Cruz, on the Island of Itaparica itself. The temporary platform functions as a floating base on which the foundation work will be carried out. The SVPonte secretary, Mateus Dias, stated that the arrival of the materials represents a concrete advancement and that the schedule is maintained to start the foundations on June 4th.

Twenty years of promises and renegotiated contracts

The idea of connecting Salvador to Itaparica by a bridge has existed since the 1960s, but the project only gained institutional form in 2009. Since then, it has gone through different governments, bids, challenges, and contract renegotiations. The original value of the concession was R$ 7.6 billion with R$ 1.5 billion in public contributions, but the contract was revised and approved by TCE-BA with new values: R$ 6.9 billion in the contract, with R$ 3.3 billion in state investment.

The concessionaire of the Salvador-Itaparica Bridge is formed by the Chinese groups CCCC and CRCC, companies with international operations in the infrastructure and logistics sectors. The public-private partnership model foresees one year of studies and licensing, five years of construction, and 29 years of operation. For Bahia, which has been following the project for decades, the arrival of materials from China and the assembly of the sites represent the most concrete moment in the history of the largest bridge over the sea in Latin America, although the skepticism accumulated over twenty years of promises is still hard to overcome.

Do you believe that the Salvador-Itaparica Bridge will be inaugurated in 2031, or do you think it will be delayed like so many other major infrastructure projects? What impresses you the most: the R$ 160 million already spent, the 12 kilometers over the sea, or the 20 years of waiting? Tell us in the comments.

The R$ 160 million spent before the start of the works

What the bridge will change in Bahia’s mobility

The logistics of building at sea with materials from China

Twenty years of promises and renegotiated contracts

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