Overview
- The national government launched the international tender on August 22–23, 2026 to grant 50‑year concessions for the Belgrano, San Martín and Urquiza freight lines and has attracted interest from Grupo México and a cereal‑sector consortium.
- Santa Fe negotiated a pledge that the partly built Circunvalar Ferroviario will continue under the concession and that the concessionaire will carry out roughly 75% of the project budget, including a planned bridge over the Salado river.
- Salta discovered the pliego lists ramales C‑14 and C‑15 as optative rather than priority works, and provincial officials and business chambers are directly urging the two bidders to commit to earlier rehabilitation because Salta supplies about 35–45% of Belgrano traffic.
- The tender sets procedural dates—queries due October 28 and proposals due November 11—with the government expecting to transfer operations in 2027 and it requires priority works to be finished within five years while optative works may take up to 15 years.
- Producers and mining groups say a credible concession could shift a much larger share of long‑distance freight to rail and cut transport costs, but provinces want clearer oversight, funding rules for rolling stock sales and binding guarantees to protect ongoing local projects.