Government admits putting money on the bullet train, former dream of Lula and Dilma

An old dream of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and former President Dilma Rousseff (PT), the construction of the bullet train between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro may receive federal financial support if the environmental viability and the company are proven. private authorized to run the project needs resources. The information was supplied by the Minister of Transport, Renan Filho (MDB), and indicates a change in the government’s attitude towards the issue.

In a presentation of the road and rail works of the new Growth Acceleration Program (PAC), last week, Renan Filho said that the undertaking, which he said is estimated at R$ 50 billion, is “very structuring for the country”.

Authorization for the construction and operation of the railroad was granted by the National Land Transport Agency (ANTT) to the private company TAV Brasil in February. The novelty, revealed by the minister, is the possible participation of public money in the project.

“We can eventually support. Let’s say that the work costs BRL 50 billion, but the entrepreneur cannot do it with BRL 50 (billion). But he manages to do it with R$ 40 (billion). It would need R$ 10 (billion) from the federal government. If that time comes, I think the government can discuss it. We haven’t reached that moment yet,” said the minister.

There are a series of pre-requisites to be met before the federal government decides on eventual participation in the project. According to him, it is necessary to present the project, which is being awaited by the ministry, and proof of its environmental viability.

Even so, the recent declaration indicates a change of position in relation to the beginning of the year, when the minister said that there would be no public contribution because it was a private project. At the time, the CEO of state-owned company Infra SA, Jorge Bastos, also said that the government was not interested in joining as a partner.

The subject may come up again in the coming months, when the Railroad Development Plan is presented, which will consolidate the projects for the sector presented in the PAC and may include others, such as the bullet train or Ferrogrão – a railroad that would enable the outflow of the harvest from the north of Mato Grosso through the Amazon river basin.

The idea of ​​building a bullet train between the two largest Brazilian cities exists at least since 2007, when the 2014 World Cup, hosted in Brazil, was in sight. The public notice was released in July 2010, but did not arouse interest. A new attempt was made during the Dilma government, but it did not go ahead due to technical and financial feasibility issues.

Current bullet train design is different from the original

The idea may be the same, but the projects are different. The new undertaking foresees the construction of 378 kilometers of railway between the North Zone of São Paulo (Pirituba neighborhood) and the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro (Santa Cruz neighborhood). The connection with the center of the two cities would be made by branch lines or by taking advantage of existing railways.

Four stations are planned: São Paulo, São José dos Campos, Volta Redonda and Rio de Janeiro. The journey would take an hour and a half. The forecast is that the trains will start operations in 2032.

The new project, coordinated by TAV Brasil, provides for three types of partnerships, in addition to financial investors: one to build the railroad; one specialized in building trains; and another for the operation.

As a work of this size requires heavy investment, it is common for governments to participate in the exploration of the modal. This is what happens, for example, in France, where the state-owned SNCF operates high-speed trains.

Another of the challenges of the project is the cost: due to the speed, which can reach 350 km/h, the route would need to be straight or with gentle curves, requiring the construction of tunnels and viaducts to cross the Serra do Mar, which would make the journey more expensive. cost of works.

The environmental issue is also a challenge. The first project went through areas of the Atlantic Forest and springs, and would demand a great negotiation process for the expropriation of the areas. A problematic point is that the stations in Rio and São Paulo would be built in areas far from the center of the two cities.

What was the initial design of the bullet train like?

The previous bullet train project, in turn, included a line linking Campinas to Rio de Janeiro, passing through three important Brazilian airports – Viracopos, Guarulhos and Galeão/Tom Jobim. Part of the journey through São Paulo would be underground, and at least nine stations would be built.

The concession notice for the exploitation of public rail transport services by high-speed train was launched in July 2010. The forecast was that the auction would take place on December 16 of the same year. The proposal was budgeted at R$ 33.1 billion (R$ 70.95 billion in today’s values, corrected by the IPCA).

The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) would finance up to R$ 19.9 billion (R$ 42.66 billion in updated values) and the costs of expropriation and release of previous environmental licenses, were estimated, at the time, at R$ $ 3.4 billion (R$ 7.29 billion in corrected values) and would be the responsibility of the federal government.

Dilma government created even state-owned for the bullet train

The project even had its own state-owned company: the High Speed ​​Rail Transport Company (Etav), created in May 2011 by converting MP 505 into Law 12,404. The funds spent would be incorporated as company capital, which would have a minority stake in the consortium to build and operate the railroad.

According to ANTT, the state-owned company would be responsible for absorbing and transferring technology for the implementation, operation and maintenance of the high-speed train to companies and national research institutes. It would also be responsible for supervising the work.

With Law 12,473 of 2012, Etav was renamed the Planning and Logistics Company (EPL) and had its scope expanded to provide services in the area of ​​projects, studies and research aimed at subsidizing the planning of infrastructure, logistics and transport in Brazil.

New changes took place in May 2022, when the government of former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) decided to unite EPL with Valec, specialized in railway projects. This merger resulted in Infra SA, responsible for planning and structuring projects for the transport sector.

The decision to merge the two state-owned companies was due to their common characteristics: both had the Union as their only partner and were dependent on Budget resources.