Brazil has Opened Rio de Janeiro – Sao Paulo HSR Project Bidding

Brazil has opened bidding for a high-speed train linking Rio de Janeiro with Sao Paulo.

Alstom,Siemens and Mitsui & Co will bid for the project, according to af.reuters.com.

Brazil’s development bank – BNDES will provide $11bn towards the project, which will be built and run on a concession basis.

The country’s government will create a closed capital company, ETAV, to manage the project, which is scheduled to be completed by 2017.
The government will retain the majority share in ETAV, which will oversee the line’s construction and operation as well as the transfer of technology.

On completion of the train line project, passengers will be able to travel between Sao Paulo and Rio in just over 1.5 hours, compared to one hour by air and six by bus.