The state project is to create a freight rail line that leaves from inside the entity and arrives at the port terminal, and in turn, links with the Interoceanic Corridor and the Mayan Train.
One of the main objectives of the State Development Plan of the Yucatan government headed by Mauricio Vila Dosal is to reindustrialize the state by creating a freight rail line that departs from within the entity and reaches Puerto Progreso and, in turn, connect with the two great regional works of the administration of Andrés Manuel López Obrador: the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (CIIT) and the Mayan Train.
This would not only boost the economy of Yucatan, but that of the entire south-southeast region, since it would involve Oaxaca, Veracruz, Campeche, Chiapas, Tabasco, and Quintana Roo.
In an interview with El Economista, Ernesto Herrera Novelo, head of the Ministry of Economic Development and Labor in Yucatan (Sefoet), explained that reindustrialization will allow them to trigger the state economy, reduce social gaps and further diversify economic activities.
He noted that Yucatan historically depended on activities such as agriculture, handicraft production and in recent years, tourism. However, he said, “what is now sought is that all the turns that are in the state are driven by Industry 4.0 and other sectors such as the automotive and aeronautical branches are also generated.”
“Similarly, it is sought that not all companies and commercial activities focus on Merida and that throughout the state there are labor sources, benefiting its 106 municipalities divided into seven regions,” he said.
To do this, he assured that work is being carried out on a railway project that allows Puerto Progreso to be linked with the CIIT and the Maya Train stations; The railway is expected to remain in the management of Vila Dosal.
“The current route of the Mayan Train is perfect, but you need a railroad that reaches Puerto Progreso, it is essential for it to generate competitive costs. This train could work with the Interoceanic Corridor project of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, ”he said.
In that sense, Herrera Novelo explained that the route that could be followed is under evaluation, but it is intended that it first connect with Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, travel through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and reach Salina Cruz, Oaxaca; “Also that in Puerto Progreso the logistics allow that the complete car of the railroad can be transported to the ship and not only the containers”.
“There are many places like in Alabama, United States, where the entire railroad car is transported and not just the containers. For example, they lower the entire van and immediately link it to a railway, are more advanced than many ports, offer better logistics, and we go for that, ”he said.
With the creation of the train for Progreso, said the owner of the Sefoet, the companies that are in the Yucatan Peninsula, as well as in Veracruz and Oaxaca would benefit, because the transfer of goods by rail would be optimized. Likewise, the doors with the Asian market would be opened more, since it would improve the terrestrial connectivity with the port of Manzanillo, Colima.
“Many of the goods that come from Asia, via Manzanillo, to get to the south-southeast move their merchandise on the road, but what would happen if the form changed and this represented cost and time savings? The answer is that we would have More investment Today the automotive and aeronautical industries seek to move their machinery in a better way, ”he added.
“On the other hand, imagine being able to make the merchandise that arrives from Puerto Progreso go to Salina Cruz in a better way. You are going to have to talk to other states and that would benefit them (…) We have many plants and factories in Puerto Progreso and this project will help us, more with the merchandise that comes from Europe. What we are looking for is to make a multimodal, ”he added.
The state secretary said that these port and land improvements will allow more investments to arrive and more companies to be installed, which will lead to digitalization and the union of manufacturing with the billing.
He acknowledged that Rafael Marín Mollinedo, head of the CIIT, in addition to working “strongly in the ports of Salinas Cruz and Coatzacoalcos”, has also supported the infrastructure projects of the entity in order to materialize such work. “We have talked to Rafael and he agrees, there is a lot of support with this project.”
He reiterated that while creating a railroad for Puerto Progreso, which offers optimal transportation to the United States, it seeks to double its current infrastructure. The terminal has a navigation channel, cruise ship dock with the capacity to serve two mega cruises of the fourth generation simultaneously, as well as an excellent position to receive tourist ferries.
“Four years ago the entity had 70,000 export containers, today there are 150,000. Today, several sectors are growing in the entity, such as the agro-industrial sector and, for this reason, boat traffic has increased. To address this and increase exports, we seek to double the port infrastructure. This is the engine of state economy, ”he said.
PPEF
In the Federation Expenditure Budget Project (PPEF) 2020, the south-southeast region of the country stands as the main priority of the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, housing large investment works.
This commitment is the continuity of the National Development Plan 2019-2024, which manifests the three major regional projects: Mayan Train, Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and the free zone of the northern border of the country.
In the explanatory statement of the PPEF, in the section Investment Priorities 2020, 24 strategic infrastructure works are observed, which amount to a total of federal resources for 28,557 million pesos.
The main work of the federal administration is the Mayan Train, which includes the construction of 1,475 kilometers of railway, and at least 16 stations along Campeche, Chiapas, Quintana Roo, Tabasco and Yucatán.
Its objective is to reduce the costs of transportation of passengers and cargo in the region, create new development poles and promote the establishment of industries that take advantage of the new connectivity advantages of the area. The 2020 PPEF proposes an allocation of 2,500 million pesos for provisions in the development of the road. Its total cost will be around 150,000 million pesos.
The other great work is the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, whose purpose, with the figure of a decentralized public body, is to implement a logistics platform in the area of the isthmus to eliminate the failures in the interconnection between the ports of Coatzacoalcos and Salina Cruz.
The corridor would benefit the inhabitants of 46 municipalities in Oaxaca and 33 in Veracruz. The modernization of the Tehuantepec Isthmus Railroad includes the maintenance of the Chiapas-Mayab tracks and the correction of the slope and curvatures of the Z Line (Salina Cruz-Medias Aguas), as well as the modernization of the ports of Coatzacoalcos and Salina Cruz. In 2020 it is intended to invest 3,195 million pesos.
More plans
Ernesto Herrera said that reindustrialization in the state will allow “to take a step beyond manufacturing activities and consolidate Yucatan as a tourist and information technology hub.”
“The arrival of investments is very important for us, it is the way by which we can achieve reindustrialization. This commitment will allow us to make more companies arrive and return, such as Grupo Modelo (…) And also that local companies may have greater opportunities in unexplored areas. For example, we are looking for the tourism industry to digitize and thus have intelligent databases, ”he said.
The state official announced what are the other goals that are in the current administration, among them are to solve and achieve energy sufficiency to 20 years through renewable energy and natural gas, bring all infrastructure services for seven regions of the state, as well as promoting the Science and Technology Park of Yucatán.
“For the creation of an economic development plan you should not think about six years, you must contemplate an expansion of 20 years in order to change the quality of life. Our goal is to achieve reindustrialization and for this, energy issues, infrastructure, exports, the automotive and aeronautical sector are very essential, ”he said.
Source: el economista, heraldo de mexico
The Mazatlan Post
