Mexico cancels China Railway Construction contract

The Mexican Ministry of Communications and Transportation has cancelled a MXP 59 billion (US$ 4.4 billion) contract for a consortium led by China Railway Construction Corp. to build a 210 km high-speed rail link. The cancelation came just three days after the contract was originally awarded.

On November 3, China Railway Construction announced that a consortium comprising itself, Chinese rolling stock maker CSR Corporation, and four Mexican companies had won the contract to build the 210 km high-speed rail link between Mexico City and Queretaro.

The scheme was to comprise a 40-month construction period, followed by just under five-years of operation and maintenance. Of the overall contract, some 60% of the construction value and all of the operational maintenance work – a total of some MXP 39 billion (US$ 2.7 billion) – was attributable to China Railway Construction.

However, on 6 November the Mexican Ministry of Communications and Transportation cancelled the contract, reportedly over criticism of how the bidding process had been carried out.

Other companies to initially show interest in the project had included Siemens, Alstom and Bombardier. However, some had reportedly said they were not given enough time to prepare bids. As a result, when the contract was awarded, the China Railway Construction consortium was the only group left in the running.

The project was to have been the first high-speed rail line in Latin America, and it would also have been the first foreign high-speed rail project built by a Chinese company.