DECREE 605 signed by President Menem and published on July 3 opened a 120-day window for the government and Argentina’s five private freight railways to renegotiate the 30-year operating concessions signed between 1991 and 1993. Some months ago the operators suspended payments for use of Argentine Railways’ infrastructure and rolling stock; government officials would be unhappy to loose the 15m pesos that these generate for the nation’s coffers each year, but as yet the regulators have taken no action.
Likely to be high on the agenda are concession lengths, tariffs and investment plans which, according to auditors and other officials, have not been fulfilled to the letter. Track renewal is a particular concern, shared by passenger operator Uepfp which is seeking a cut in its fee from 5 to 0·5 pesos per train-km to reflect the poor quality of routes managed by the freight operators. o
