Salta Demands C-14 and C-15 Branch Lines be Mandatory Works in National Belgrano Cargas Tender

Governor Gustavo Sáenz urged the National Government to guarantee execution of the C-14 and C-15 branch lines of Belgrano Cargas and to establish them as mandatory in the tender specifications, reversing the decision to include them as optional. The governor detailed that for over a month he has been negotiating with the Cabinet Office, Ministry of Economy, and Secretary of Transport to modify that condition, and has coordinated a joint demand with the seven chambers that make up the Provincial Business and Production Board.

Logistics costs as a critical competitiveness factor

Sáenz warned that the lack of railway infrastructure deepens historical inequalities and significantly hampers the competitiveness of Salta's production. According to the governor, the logistics cost to transport merchandise to the Port of Rosario is 30% to 40% more expensive than in other regions of the country, a gap that limits the province's export capacity.

“It costs far more to ship our products to the Port of Rosario than it costs to ship from Rosario to Amsterdam. We cannot afford to wait another 50 years or have one, two or three companies decide whether to build these works,” said the governor in a diagnosis that underscores the urgency of state intervention in the matter.

Belgrano Cargas will be concessioned to private operators.

Regional integration and cross-border connectivity

The governor stressed the strategic character of both branch lines for regional integration and productive development. The C-14 branch extends toward Chile while the C-15 reaches Bolivia, configuring a cross-border integration infrastructure that, according to Sáenz, is fundamental to the province's progress.

“The C-14 branch ends in Chile, the C-15 branch ends in Bolivia. This is the integration we need for our province's progress. It is through infrastructure, transportation and technology that we will develop, not through more taxes levied on distance,” Sáenz said during the presentation of the joint demand.

State policy versus private decision

The governor questioned whether implementation of key works should be subject to private companies' decisions rather than constitute a federal state policy. In his view, the branch lines cannot remain subject to private operators' discretion nor can their execution be discretionary.

“The Belgrano Cargas tender has united Saltans more than ever. I have been discussing this for a month with all National Government stakeholders and have requested that the C-14 and C-15 branch lines, so important for Salta, also be included as mandatory works. Unfortunately, those who drafted the specifications forgot about this part of Argentina and listed them as optional”

“The branch lines cannot remain subject to the will of a few companies. Works cannot be optional, they must be mandatory because the future and progress of our beloved province of Salta and all of northern Argentina depends on it,” Sáenz said in an explicit call for railway infrastructure to be considered a strategic public good.

Call for political and business unity

The governor called for unity among the North's political and productive sectors to support the negotiations with the National Government. He directed a specific request to national senators, national deputies from Salta and actors of the North region to back the demand that, according to Sáenz, transcends party divisions.

“I humbly ask all national senators, national deputies from Salta and everyone who is part of the North region to support us in this request. This is not about political or partisan interests. What is at stake is Salta's and Saltans' future. Federalism is progress,” concluded the governor, emphasizing that the demand responds to criteria of comprehensive regional development and not electoral calculations.