B-Rail to invest €300 million in high speed trains

B-Rail, part of the Portuguese Barraqueiro transport group, has been in contact with suppliers to purchase eight trains to operate on the high-speed train line between Lisbon and Porto, with an extension to Braga and Faro from 2029.

Compliance with the deadlines for the construction of the new Lisbon-Porto line, the establishment of an infrastructure use fee of between €5 and €8 euros per kilometre and transparent rules in CP’s competition are some of the conditions for the group’s investment to operate the high speed trains.

In an interview with business daily Negócios, Luís Cabaço Martins, administrator of Barraqueiro said the company was already in contact with several rolling-stock suppliers and is currently examining all of the proposals.

“We are building a business plan according to reality, which is advancing due to the construction of the Lisbon Porto high-speed line. The deadlines point to being fully built in 2033. We do not know if the connection between Carregado to Lisbon will be made or not, but the line to Carregado is scheduled for 2031, if there are no delays”, he said.

The company is working on a schedule of 12 services per day between Lisbon and Porto in each direction, with an additional three to Braga and two to Faro.

However, he said that there were conditioning factors. One is the commitment to deadlines for the high-speed rail link which the company depends on.

Another key aspect is the usage fee for the infrastructure that rail operators pay which represents around 50% of rail companies’ operational costs, and a call to avoid the temptation to set the costs too high to finance the investments, since this would undermine the viability of the business.

“We have already suggested an amount that seems reasonable to us and is in line with costs practised in Europe of between €5 and €8 per kilometre/train.

Luís Cabaço Martins said there were also concerns over competition and transparency over the awarding of contracts.

“There can be no state aid, there can be no cross-subsidisation of public companies, and the accounts have to be transparent. We know that the purchase of 16 trains for CP is planned and there is talk of more than €500 million of investment. Will it be public investment? How will it be done? It is an issue that concerns us and has to do with the need to clarify the rules”.