THE FAILURE of the Argentinian government’s attempt to sell a 79% stake in Belgrano Cargas (RG 7.05 p385) received a degree of official confirmation at the end of June, when Minister of Federal Planning Julio De Vido and Transport Secretary Ricardo Jaime met officials from the 14 provinces served by the ailing metre-gauge freight operator.
The government is now seeking to secure a US$250m loan from the World Bank to meet the railway’s urgent need for investment, although a turf war appears to have broken out over who should administer this funding. According to un-named officials within his own department quoted by the daily newspaper Clarín, Minister of Economy & Production Dr Roberto Lavagna is to take the lead on rescuing Belgrano Cargas at the insistence of President Néstor Kirchner himself, following the transport department’s failed privatisation attempt.
On the question of ownership, Lavagna’s team is reported to favour leaving things much as they stood, with 20% of the company in the hands of current operator Unión Ferroviaria and the federal government controlling an 80% stake. The transport department’s preferred option of leaving workers with only 10% of the shares could create serious financial problems for the railway union, which might seek to pursue the government for unpaid subsidy through the courts.
The provinces of northwest Argentina are anxious that track and rolling stock are quickly repaired to carry export crops when they are harvested later this year. It has been proposed that 40 locomotives and 2000 wagons should be overhauled as an immediate priority, as well as 2500 km of the Belgrano network including 884 km from Joaquín V Gonz
