Puerto Rico’s roads, ports, energy grid and other infrastructure scored an overall D-minus in the first report card issued for the U.S. commonwealth yesterday by an engineering group, which put a price tag of as much as $23 billion over 10 years on needed updates and repairs, Reuters reported. The near-failing grade from the American Society of Civil Engineers comes as the island is still trying to recover from devastating hurricanes that hit in 2017 and as its bankrupt government attempts to restructure about $120 billion of debt and pension obligations in federal court. Most of the island’s infrastructure is in “poor condition” and is exhibiting “significant deterioration,” according to the report. Puerto Rico would need to spend an additional $13 billion to $23 billion over 10 years “to update infrastructure in order to support economic growth and competitiveness,” the report said. It added that “when considering deferred maintenance and hurricane-related recovery projects, the investment gap is even larger.” So far, the U.S. government has sent the island $14.4 billion of the $43 billion in disaster funding that has been allocated.
