Public investments in passengers’ rail transport are reactivating the national industry of trains and equipments for the segment, fallen asleep there is more than 20 years in Brazil. Of a production exclusively exporter from 2003 to 2006, the passengers’ rail section is growing and it has 15% of production today returned to the internal market.
The perspective of the release of the high speed train Rio-São Paulo and of subway projects and light vehicle on rails (VLT) in capitals that get ready to receive the games of the World cup of 2014 is creating a favorable atmosphere for the development of production lines in the country. They are at least R$ 74,4 billion the they be invested by the federal and state governments up to 2014 in enterprises in the section.
The retaking of the industry is perceptible with the recent installation of a factory of the Spaniard CAF in Hortolândia (SP) and it already causes impact in the planning of companies as Alstom and Bombardier, that have an eye on the possibility of diversifying the production in the country. In spite of not giving interview, Siemens also waives to the market intention of enlarging the performance of the enterprise.
From 2005 to 2008, the national production of passenger’s trains increased 147%, while the participation of the exports fell from 100% to 89% in the same period, what shows an earnings of space of the internal market. In the first semester of this year, the production repeated the rhythm of last year and the exports continued with reduction in his/her representativeness, passing for 84% of the total.
Fifteen years ago, Alstom settled in the country atraída for a wave of investments that didn’t have continuity. The company, that was the only manufacturers of passenger’s trains in the country before the entrance of CAF, got if to maintain because she returned to the exports.
Only starting from 2007 that scenery began to change with the investments from São Paulo in the expansion of the subway and in the modernization of the urban trains of the São Paulo Company of Metropolitan Trains (CPTM). Of 2007 for here the company got to close contracts in São Paulo and Brasília. They are 16 trains for the subway from São Paulo, more the modernization and renewal of other 47. In Brasília the contracts are for the construction of a VLT and for the supply of 12 trains and of the signalling system for the subway of the city.
“It begins there to be a diversification of the poles of investments in the country and Brasília appears as a strong place in passengers'” trains, Ramón Fondevila, general director of Alstom says. Besides a total of 107 trains already bought for the system metroferroviário in São Paulo, there are auctions in preparation phase to order more 33 trains for CPTM and 26 trains for the Subway. “The investments are also important for the development of the industry in the State”, the secretary from São Paulo of the Metropolitan Transports, José Luiz Portella says.
The continuity of the signature of contracts does Alstom think about her expansion programs in Brazil again. “If the market continues in that way, we thought about enlargement and in implantation of new factories”, Fondevila says. The company will import the trains for VLT of Brasília, but according to the general director, the intention is to begin to manufacture that train type in Brazil in case new requests appear.
Among the interested cities in investing in the system on rails for passengers are Recife, Christmas, Salvador, Fortaleza, Belo Horizonte, Curitiba, among the more reminded by the executives of the section, many already with projects in process with resources of the Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento (PAC).
Simefre, entity that represents the manufacturers of materials and rail and road equipments, makes calculations that just considering projects of subway expansion and urban trains in process today, there is an universe of R$ 21 billion in investment. In case other promises are rendered, for the entrance is waited of more R$ 39,8 billion.
Carlos Levy, president of Bombardier Transportation in Brazil, says that the most important for the section is that the investments have continuity. “For the industry, the one that imports is that the contracts happen in short periods, but that are perpetuated by several years”, he says. According to him, the perspective of World cup in 2014 and the possibility of the Olympic Games of 2016 be also in Brazil has been guaranteeing certain safety to the companies that more projects owe if it renders.
Bombardier is present in Brazil since 2001, but it doesn’t manufacture trains. The company works with reform, modernization and systems of signalling of passengers’ railroad. In June of this year, it won an auction to modernize 26 trains of the Subway from São Paulo, a contract about € 87 million. Of eye in the investments, the company doesn’t discard the possibility to install a new production line.
“We don’t have restriction, since there is project to justify the production. In the moment, however, we are more concentrated in adapting our structure to a larger capacity of service to the market”, Levy says. According to him, the company went recently by a personnel adaptation, offices, technological updating.
CAF came to Brazil to assist an order of 48 trains of CPTM and 17 of the Subway of São Paulo. The perspective of new contracts is that encouraged the company settling and like this to accomplish the contractual demand of 60% of nationalization. “Before we had the intention in associating to a national company because we thought the volume didn’t compensate the investment in a factory. Our decision changed because we decided to look the market as a whole”, Agenor Marinho Filho, director president of CAF Brasil says.
In case the local investments are not confirmed, CAF chose for also if it protects with the external market. The intention of the company is to turn the factory in Hortolândia (SP) an export platform to Latin America. “Brazil is strategic, because it is the largest market of the area”, the executive says.
The companies say to feel an increase of the picture of national suppliers already in process due to the investments. The medium index of nationalization of the section today is of 70%, according to data of Simefre. That is the percentile of national components in the production of trains of Alstom, but the expectation is that he increases. Fondevila, general director of the company, says that he already notices a larger movement of national manufacturers. “Before we needed to develop suppliers, we chose one with capacity and we developed to assist our need when the import cost was loud. Today it is not more necessary”, he says.
Marcopolo, of the road segment, is a company example that intends to become supplying for the passengers’ rail section. According to José Antônio Fernandes Martins, president of Simefre and executive of Marcopolo, the plan owes if it confirms with the implementation of the high speed train Rio-São Paulo, with the supply of armchairs, covering and floor. “As the investments go if rendering, we will notice a larger growth of the market of suppliers”, he says.
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