The economic dynamics lead to a significant flow of goods and services and encourages business management to reach new global markets that enable growth and relocation.
To ensure the timely delivery of high-quality products, enterprises need to implement comprehensive logistics management, encompassing the coordination of production, marketing, and supply. If achieved, this would serve as a valuable tool to gain a competitive edge.
Amidst an ongoing effort to reduce transit times and create competitive products on a global scale, South America stands out as a region where numerous studies and proposals have been developed to facilitate cross-continental journeys through the utilization of interoceanic corridors as a means of multimodal transportation.
With this in mind, Argentina presents its prospective Bi-oceanic Railway Corridor. Its location not only facilitates geo-economic analysis but also enables implementation within a multi-regional context.
Spanning the Paso Internacional de San Francisco, the Bi-oceanic Railway Corridor holds significant strategic importance for the development of the ATACALAR provinces. Consequently, it has garnered considerable interest due to its evident potential. The ATACALAR Integration Committee comprises the following Argentine provinces:
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La Rioja;
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Catamarca;
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Tucumán;
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Santiago del Estero;
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Cordoba;
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Entre Ríos;
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Santa Fé;
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Atacama, chilean side;
It emerges as a great development opportunity for the provinces that make it up and other regions with which it is linked; fundamentally for nations such as Argentina, Chile and Brazil, which together will be able to satisfy the growing request for agro-food demanded by China and India, among other Asian markets.
The project’s main goal is to link Argentina’s production core to the Third Region of Atacama-Chile ports, as an access point to Pacific-Asia.
The Bi-oceanic Central Northwest Railway Corridor is poised to emerge as a efficient and lucrative alternative. Projections indicate a 40% increase in export volume by 2030, and the key ports in the Atacama region are well-positioned to meet the anticipated demand.
The project holds a significant competitive advantage, encompassing a 30% reduction in freight costs, a doubling of loading capacity, a reduction in navigation time (between 12 and 15 days), and ports with increased draught (three times deeper than the ports of Buenos Aires and Rosario). This translates to expanded loading capacity for ships, with approximately 400,000 more tonnes compared to local ports with a capacity of 50,000 tonnes.
The advantage of allowing greater loading and transportation capacity, in relation to Buenos Aires and Rosario, will enable a 60% reduction in port operations costs.
The projects plan for three logistics centres or loading transfer ports:
01. In Chamical, La Rioja;
02. In Recreo, La Paz, Catamarca;
03. In Tinogasta, Catamarca.
They will become hubs for gathering, transfer, and distribution of load, which enables efficiency at logistics operations.
Direct and indirect benefits
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The creation of legitimate jobs.
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An increase in work productivity and specialization of new strategic areas.
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A decrease in problems derived from far of selling points.
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Agility and efficiency in foreign trade. An increase of added value for exports.
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The development of export capacity with a focus on the global economy.
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An increase in foreign investment. A boost and incorporation of new technologies.
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The development of deprived and isolated areas.
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Better life quality of distant settlements.
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Prevents from depopulation in distant areas.
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The creation of strategic hubs.
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The strengthening of the regional tourism activity.
A strategic
geographic location
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The corridor is situated across the Northwest region and Centre’s production core, which puts its multi-modal load transfer ports closer to production hubs.
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It is set in between the Pasos that are distributed along with the Andes range. It is positioned towards the third Chilean region ports of deeper draught to allow the exit of great product volume.
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It is not affected by the southern Argentine Pasos’ climatic conditions, which are closed for the most part of the year due to heavy snowfall.
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The corridor has the same gauge width as the Chilean one, narrow. This is not the case of the other local ones.
Transit-Friendly
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It is one of the most multi-modal transit-friendly because of its slope, which is less than 1.4%.
Opportunity
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Adding value to products and generating balanced development, in order to establish itself as a powerhouse with federal growth.
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Saving 30% of freight in products exported to Asia.
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Lightening the load of being in the centre that weights on Capital Federal, which results in an increase of marginality for the rest of the provinces.
Integración
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The Bi-oceanic Railway Corridor will benefit a group of national provinces that, together with the Chilean region of Atacama, have been established as a cluster for the alignment of interests and objectives.
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The project includes more than 12 million inhabitants, 12.5 million of arable hectares and an export offer of U$S 31.465.000.000.