Historic contract in Chile

SYSTRA won this contract in a consortium (50/50) with Zañartu, a Chilean engineering firm specialising in civil engineering, for a period of five years, until the two suburban lines are commissioned. The aim of the Chilean authorities is to create two direct rail services from Santiago to Melipilla in the south-west and to Batucco in the north-west.

The year is off to a good start for SYSTRA in Chile with this contract with EFE, the most important contract signed to date with this recent client for our Group. We are delighted that this project will transform the daily mobility of Chileans. Our expertise in suburban lines throughout the world, from the Americas to Asia and Europe, is undoubtedly a key asset for the success of this project.

Hervé Laurain, Hispanic America Cluster Director

Rail expertise for Chilean mobility

With more than 5.5 million inhabitants in Santiago and a huge metropolitan area, the Chilean capital has serious needs for rail connections to its suburbs. The creation of these two lines will help reduce travel times between the suburbs and the city centre.

To this end, we will mobilise our expertise in track, rolling stock, maintenance workshops, as well as in rail systems and RAMS (Reliability, Availability, Maintainability, Safety) in order to offer EFE comprehensive support.

Both lines have their specificities. The Santiago – Melipilla line aims to improve the infrastructure and install a second track between Malocco and Melipilla. The Santiago – Batuco line aims to create a double track for passengers and to improve the existing line, which will be dedicated to freight.

This is a line known to SYSTRA, which carried out the design studies in 2021/2022.

Chilean railways: a promising market

SYSTRA is gradually penetrating the Chilean market and acquiring a position of trustworthy engineering with EFE. The story began in 2018 with an Asset Management assignment for the entire network, at the end of which we submitted a diagnosis of the obsolescence of the country’s entire infrastructure in 2019.

Two years later, EFE entrusted us with a strategic consulting study for the deployment of new rolling stock maintenance workshops, before awarding us the preliminary studies for the Santiago-Melipilla suburban line. Finally, we recently contributed to the design of the railway depot for the Santiago-Chillan line.

Key features – 2 suburban lines in Santiago