The national government will take a key step this Thursday by publishing the resolution that enables the privatization process of Belgrano Cargas y Logística S.A. The measure includes long-term concessions and establishes clear rules to attract private capital to the freight railway system.
One of the central conditions is that the concessions will last for 50 years. Additionally, the participation of companies controlled by foreign states is expressly prohibited. This aims to ensure that operational control remains in the hands of private actors without external state ties.
The state-owned company manages a network of 7,600 kilometers that spans sixteen provinces and the City of Buenos Aires. The three lines involved are the General San Martín, the General Urquiza, and the General Belgrano, which connect productive areas in the north, the coast, and the center of the country with the main consumption and export centers.
The privatization scheme is divided into three independent axes. On one hand, the tracks and adjacent properties will be granted to two private operators. They will be responsible for maintaining the infrastructure and may charge tolls for the use of the branches.
Workshops, rolling stock, and bidding options
In parallel, two other concessionaires will receive the workshops for the same fifty-year term. Their responsibility will be to repair and prepare the trains that run on the different lines. The third component is the sale of railway material: locomotives and wagons that currently belong to the state will be transferred to private hands through public auction.
Bidding schedule
