Passenger railway may be part of concession in Brazil

A proposal for the construction of a railway connecting the cities of São Paulo and Campinas may be included in the Program for Investment Partnerships (PPI in the original acronym), the federal government's main bidding projects. According to José Carlos Medaglia, president of the Planning and Logistics Company (EPL), the project may materialize as part of a bidding process or a public-private partnership.

“It can hardly be a solely public investment,” Medaglia told Agência Brasil. The intercity train is expected to run on a 135km-long line with nine stations. Sixty thousand passengers should be served every day. “It's a really interesting alternative to provide a railway solution to passengers in an underserved area,” he added.

In Medaglia's view, the project will be made possible as part of a cooperation between the federal government and the São Paulo state government. “Some sections are covered by federal concessions, so we must manage to share the same line or the same track ownership,” he explains.

Other projects

In addition to the railway line, EPL is studying other projects which may become concessions under the PPI. Also under analysis are 30 sections of federal highways, and some 40 port terminals, in addition to all of the country's railway network, Medaglia reported.

Airport concessions for the private enterprise are being studied. “Depending on the decisions to be subsequently made by the government, we'll regard airport as a priority issue,” he said, without naming which terminals may undergo changes.

Planning Minister Dyogo Oliveira said that the government is studying the concession of at last ten other airports to the private enterprise, among them those in the cities of Goiânia, Vitória, and Recife.

The next PPI meeting may be held in the first half year, said Medaglia, when a new list of concessions to the private enterprise will be compiled. The government has announced two sets of concessions, the first in September, last year, with 35 projects, the second slated for March this year, with 55 new concessions.

According to the Medaglia, one of the precautions the government is taking is not to present too comprehensive projects, due to the difficulties facing major construction companies stemming from Operation Car Wash. “We're aware that the big players don't have their full appetites right now. We know of the difficulties faced by the major construction companies and traditional concessionaires. So we must adapt to the present moment.”

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira