The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, through the Directorate General of the Railway Sector (DGSF), has launched a Preliminary Market Consultation (CPM) to evaluate different technological alternatives to diesel traction on several non-electrified lines of the General Interest Railway Network (RFIG), through publication on the Public Sector Procurement Platform.
The objective of this public consultation, regulated by Article 115 of the Public Sector Contracts Law, is to gather information from economic operators in the railway sector, while ensuring transparency, equal treatment, and non-discrimination. The information and documentation related to this consultation, which will remain open for operator participation until September 30, is available on the Ministry’s website.
This consultation aims to support the socioeconomic studies necessary to analyze the advisability of electrifying a series of lines or some of their sections, or modernizing them with innovative railway technologies and alternatives to diesel to reduce emissions on the General Interest Railway Network.
The currently non-electrified lines for which sustainable traction alternatives are being investigated through this Preliminary Market Consultation are:
Ávila–Salamanca, Torralba–Soria, Huesca–Canfranc, Cáceres–Valencia de Alcántara, Zafra–Huelva, Mérida–Los Rosales
The initiative stems from commitments made to the European Commission, linked to investments made within the framework of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). Specifically, it was agreed to incorporate electrification planning or the promotion of fossil-fuel-free technologies such as hydrogen or battery-powered trains on non-electrified lines into the new Indicative Strategy.
Currently, most of the General Interest Railway Network, managed by ADIF, is electrified. Of the 11,672 kilometers of this network, 6,719 km (57.5% of the total) are electrified lines. Regarding the network managed by ADIF-Alta Velocidad (AV), it comprises approximately 3,976 kilometers, the vast majority of which (3,748 km, or 94.2% of the total) are electrified.
Full press release ( translated by Google) https://tinyurl.com/5n8kh5x8
