Ferrograin: understand the railroad project that promises to boost grain flows through the North, but faces a legal impasse

The federal government’s billion-dollar logistical project to expand the railway network and boost the flow of grain from the Midwest through the ports of Arco Norte is trying to prosper amid legal challenges. MINFRA ( the ministry of infrastructure) is betting that the auction for the concession of the Ferrogrão EF-170 Railroad should take place soon, despite the legal obstacles that impede the progress of the plan.

A year ago, the project was submitted for analysis by the federal audit court (TCU), an essential step for the auction notice to be published. It so happens that the procedures related to the project were suspended in March by the Brazilian supreme court (STF).

The promise is that the construction of the railway will consolidate a long-term logistical corridor capable of reducing distances and lightening the pockets of those who pay to export products such as soybeans and corn, considering shipping costs would decrease 30% to 40%.

The railroad project, which has been discussed for more than four years and is much awaited by the agribusiness sector, is part of PPI (the investment partnership program). The estimated value of the investment is R$12 billion. The private sector will inject the funds, and the concession period is 69 years. The government expects that the EF-170 will be in operation within ten years.

The 933 kilometers of Ferrogrão will follow the path of the BR-163. The railroad tracks will connect the municipality of Sinop (MT) to the district of Miritituba (PA) on the banks of the Tapajós River. Currently, around 70% of Mato Grosso’s soybean and corn crop flows through ports in the south and southeast, despite being located more than two thousand kilometers from the origin.

Source: G1

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