Two European engineering and architecture companies Sener and Greisch have won a contract to design and build the fourth bridge over the Panama Canal.

The 965m-long cable-stayed bridge will have a 485m main span and a 75m-tall vertical clearance for passing ships.

Work on the project includes interchanges at either side of the canal.

Two double-decker access viaducts with a total length of 2,450m will connect to the interchanges.

Sener and Greisch will work with China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) subsidiary Highway Planning and Design Institute, who will design the structure of the main bridge, on behalf of the Panama Cuarto Puente Consortium (CPCP).

Sener and Greisch are responsible for special studies and supplementary projects. Sener will design the interchanges and access viaducts.

In 2018, CCCC won a legal challenge after its winning bid to build the bridge was appealed by competitors.

Ricardo Sardinha, Sener’s global highways business director, said: “It’s an honour to be part of this ambitious CPCP project, which will improve the lives of Panamanians with a unique structure that poses an engineering challenge.”