Álvaro Durán Leal

Álvaro has been widely recognized as one of the most trusted advisors for infrastructure projects in Colombia. He has unparalleled experience in leading the legal advisory of some of the most relevant projects in the country, related to roads, airports, rails, TMT, public utilities and public finance. Within this experience, it is notable his participation in the structuring of Bogotá’s First Metro Line, the city’s most ambitious infrastructure project in Colombia´s history, in the 4G road concession project in Colombia, the concession of the second runway of El Dorado Airport, the PPP to build and maintain the infrastructure for the Bus Rapid Transit of Bogotá City (Transmilenio) and the concession of the terminals and aprons of El Dorado Airport.

Currently Mr. Durán is the lead partner in the legal counsel provided by the Firm to IDB Invest for the structuring of the Magdalena River Waterway Project, the most important waterway in Colombia, and gives legal advice to some of the most relevant private concessionaires -Odinsa and ISA among others- on the development of unsolicited proposals and the execution of their ongoing infrastructure projects. Álvaro also leads the legal structuring of the Canoas wastewater treatment plant project, which aims to clean 70% of Bogota´s River heavily polluted water.

Álvaro was legal director of the concession of the second runway of El Dorado International Airport and advised INVIAS on the structuring of Malla Vial del Vale del Cauca y Cauca. He also advises multilateral agencies on PPP- related issues throughout Latin America.

Mr. Durán has also been active in litigation and dispute resolution relating to infrastructure projects and financial matters.

He has been a professor of public procurement at the Externado de Colombia University, and of the PPP regime at the Universidad de los Andes, Javeriana, EAFIT and the Medellín Chamber of Commerce. He has also been a consultant to the World Bank for the regulation of PPPs in other Latin American countries and invited as a lecturer on PPP issues for Mexico, Peru, Brazil and Uruguay.