Transnordestina Railway reaches 82% completion between Ceará and Piauí

Construction of the first phase of Brazil’s Transnordestina Railway, on the branch connecting inland Piauí to the coast of Ceará, has reached 82% completion.

The latest section, slightly more than 100 kilometers long, between the Ceará municipalities of Acopiara and Quixeramobim, was inaugurated on Thursday (2) at an event attended by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Ceará Governor Elmano de Freitas.

“This railway is vital to the development prospects of this region,” Lula said during the ceremony in Quixeramobim.

Considered the largest linear infrastructure project currently under construction in Brazil, the Transnordestina will extend for 1,206 kilometers, linking Eliseu Martins, in Piauí, to the Port of Pecém, in Ceará. The railway will cross 53 municipalities in Brazil’s Northeast, including the western part of Pernambuco through the city of Salgueiro.

With the newly delivered sections, the railway now has 777 kilometers of physical infrastructure completed, according to the Ministry of Transport. The government expects the full 1,200 kilometers of track to be completed by the end of next year.

According to the federal government, total investment in the project is estimated at R$15 billion, with R$9.8 billion disbursed by March 2026.

Thursday’s event also included the delivery of 100 hopper railcars for transporting grains and fertilizers, as well as the announcement that another 370 railcars will be produced. Authorities also signed the service order for the Nelog branch line, which will connect the railway to the Nelog private-use terminal at the Pecém Complex.

A letter of intent was also signed for the development of the Quixeramobim dry port, a project expected to attract R$1 billion in private investment. The facility is intended to improve regional logistics and support the development of new industrial projects.

Connection to the Port of Suape

The original Transnordestina Railway project, launched 20 years ago, included an additional branch of more than 500 kilometers linking western Pernambuco, starting in Salgueiro, to the Port of Suape, in the Recife metropolitan region.

That section, however, was removed from the project under the previous administration. Its contracting process remains suspended by a decision from Brazil’s Federal Court of Accounts, known as TCU.

Source: Agência Brasil

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