The Minister of Industry, Energy and Mining, Elisa Facio, and Minister José Luis Falero signed, on February 29, together with representatives of the French consortium Setec, a memorandum of understanding to carry out a feasibility study in order to implement a transport service passenger railway in the metropolitan area.
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The initiative focuses on the use of trains that use hydrogen as fuel in the first 60 kilometers of the Central Railway and that connect the cities of Canelones and 25 de Agosto with Montevideo.
The study will initially last 12 months, is financed by the French government and will address aspects such as traffic, demand for passenger transport services, income, railway operations, necessary infrastructure, costs, economic analysis and strategies for the decarbonization of the sector.
Falero defined the initiative as a situation diagnosis of the possibilities of railway development in the short and medium term in the country.
In addition, he pointed out that the project is a consequence of the reactivation of this means of transportation, starting with the incorporation of the central railway, which will be inaugurated in April.
The head of the MTOP added that these initiatives will allow the Secretary of State to work on certain possibilities for improving the network in other parts of Uruguay.
Likewise, he recalled that within the framework of the State policy that involves working with an emphasis on environmental issues, it is necessary to study the impact generated by permanent mobility by bus between Montevideo and the metropolitan area, in addition to the vehicular overload on streets, roads and routes, among other aspects.
If this study is also focused on the use of a fuel that Uruguay is working hard on, such as green hydrogen, it is a combo that is of interest, he highlighted.
Meanwhile, Facio recalled that the initiative originates at the request of his predecessor, Omar Paganini, from a visit to the European country, and responds to a long-term vision of Uruguay's energy sector.
He reiterated that the country is focused on the second energy transition, which emphasizes the decarbonization of industry and transportation to reduce the use of fossil fuels. In this context, in turn, work is being done on the production of green hydrogen and its derivatives as a new vector for domestic use and export.
“The possibility of implementing a passenger train powered by green hydrogen unites all these aspects,” he summarized.
Also present at the event were the National Director of Railway Transport, Uruguay Graña, and the ambassador of the French Republic, Jean-Paul Seytre. ■