CICSA/FCC win rail mandate
A consortium of Mexican company CICSA and Spain’s FCC have won the Mexican Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transport's mandate for the construction and design of the 111km section of the Tren del Norte from Saltillo to Santa Catarina.
The project has a budget of more than US$1.73bn and a completion period of 31 months. The 1,200km Tren del Norte will connect Mexico City with the US border at Nuevo Laredo, requiring some US$7.5bn. The companies are expected to fund the works. The team of FCC and CICSA, the infrastructure arm of Carlos Slim's Grupo Carso, have previously used project finance in the region and recently borrowed from multilateral Central American Bank for Economic Integration, Cabei, backing a project in Panama.
The Saltillo-Nuevo Laredo Passenger Train is part of the government's plan to expand the country's rail network, with the aim of improving connectivity in northern Mexico and facilitating mobility between two strategic industrial hubs. According to the ministry, the project aims to reactivate rail infrastructure in the region, offering new transport routes that will benefit the population and the logistics sector. Officials estimate the line will carry 7 million passengers annually, linking Saltillo with Monterrey and Nuevo Laredo to strengthen economic and tourism ties across Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas.
