Argentina’s national government is in the preparatory stages for equipping an aging railway and laying new train tracks to service the Vaca Muerta shale play. The railway is to run from the port city of Bahia Blanca in Buenos Aires province through Rio Negro to Anelo and Rincon de los Sauces in the southwestern province of Neuquen. The project also includes building more roads and highways.
There is yet no start date for the USD 1.2 billion project, but the cargo train is scheduled to be in operation in five years, according to a plan drafted by the national Ministry of Transport.
According to the press, the project involves revamping 1,300 km of lines from Bahia Blanca to Neuquen City, and laying 250 km of new tracks from Chichinales, Rio Negro to Anelo and Rincon de los Sauces.
With the project, the government wants to increase the transport speed to 90 km/hour, and run eight to 10 trains per day. The train would help lower the cost of moving proppant for fracking from national or foreign suppliers.
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