Bnamericas: Brazil’s government is seeking to convince Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund to invest in the concession of the Ferrogrão railway through meetings with representatives of the fund.
The government plans to put out to tender the 69-year concession in the first quarter of 2021. It is one of the country’s largest infrastructure projects, comprising a 933km stretch and investments of 8.4bn reais (US$1.58bn).
Infrastructure minister Tarcísio Gomes de Freitas held a virtual meeting on Thursday with fund representatives to discuss the strategic importance that the Ferrogrão project could have for the Middle East since it involves food security.
“With Ferrogrão, we will be able to transport the grains from Mato Grosso state, creating a new railway corridor of exports,” said the minister in a press release.
The meeting was the second between Brazilian government officials and fund representatives and the next meeting will see technical staff from the two parties look at details of the project.
During President Jair Bolsonaro’s 2019 visit to Saudi Arabia, the sovereign wealth fund unveiled plans to invest up to US$10bn in Brazilian infrastructure projects as part of a strategy to diversify its portfolio.
