The projects of the Western Export Corridor - Nova Ferroeste, which should connect Maracaju (MS) to the Port of Paranaguá, including the Cascavel to Foz do Iguaçu branch, were presented to the entrepreneurs of RZD International, an operator of the Russian railway system.

The presentation was made by the representative of the Secretariat of Planning and Structuring Projects, in the area of ​​partnerships, Luiz Henrique Fagundes, on Friday (08), at the Iguaçu Palace. Participated the Director General of Development of RZD International, Sergey Stolyarov, and the Director for Latin America of RZD International, Andree Grebenyuk.

Fagundes explained that Paraná already has the support of the Federal Government to run the project. He showed the cargo potential of Nova Ferroeste, detailed the Foz do Iguaçu - Cascavel branch, considered the Logistics hub of South America, and presented the estimated schedule for execution. He said that the Western Export Corridor is the biggest railway challenge in Brazil.

“The railway project that will connect the productive sector in the West of Paraná, Mato Grosso do Sul and Paraguay to the Port of Paranaguá requires companies with high investment capacity, great training in engineering and railway experience. RZD undoubtedly fulfills these requirements ”, highlighted Fagundes.

The director of Production at Ferroeste, Gerson Almeida, and the consultant in the area of ​​partnerships at the Planning Secretariat, Claudinir Franco, were present at the meeting; the superintendent of the Structural Program of the Civil House, João Schneider, and the manager of the Thematic and Sectoral Councils of the Federation of Industries of Paraná (Fiep), João Arthur Mor.

“The railway modal is cheaper, more efficient, saves energy and fuel, emits less carbon than the highway modal and eliminates the large flow of trucks on the roads, reducing the number of accidents”, said João Arthur Mor. He is good from an economic, social and environmental point of view, and this interest by the Russians in coming to know and study the projects, shows the viability of Nova Ferroeste ’, he said.

EXPERIENCE - RZD International has already built 85 thousand kilometers of tracks (Brazil has a network of approximately 30 thousand kilometers). It offers services and technologies for railway construction, from pre-feasibility studies to project details and commissioning of turnkey projects.

“It was a great opportunity to learn about Paraná's initiatives to increase cargo transport capacity, through the development of railway infrastructure,” said Sergey Stolyarov. “We are very interested in participating in the State's development plan, which is to increase the transport capacity and increase the efficiency of the logistics infrastructure towards Paranaguá”, he commented.

NEW RAILWAY - The Government of Paraná has already taken the first step towards preparing a railway study that will cover 1,370 kilometers. In September, a notice of expression of interest from national and international companies was published in the Official Gazette of the Federal Government for the contracting of services for the preparation of Technical, Economic, Environmental and Legal feasibility studies for the projects: Nova Ferrovia - Paranaguá a Maracaju (MS) ) and the Cascavel Railway Extension to Foz do Iguaçu.