Pantanal Railway: a solution for agricultural outflow

Brazil is going through a new phase in its railway structure – several works that were stopped were resumed or completed and others were approved and started. In this way, we have many railway lines currently being built, such as the North-South Railway that intends to connect the state of Pará to Rio Grande do Sul, the Nova Transnordestina Railroad that will connect Ceará to Pernambuco and now, recently approved, construction will begin of the Pantanal Railway, which intends to connect the municipality of Panorama, in São Paulo, to Porto Murtinho in Mato Grosso do Sul, on the banks of the Paraguay River.

The Pantanal Railroad aims – in addition to bringing several benefits to the region, such as the creation of jobs and the promotion of local businesses – to favor and facilitate the distribution and flow of agricultural products produced in this region, therefore, these trains will have the main cargo: soy, corn and sugar. However, the scope will be even greater, allowing the transport of various types of products, including: ore, meat, cellulose and other grains. 

Pantanal Railroad Project

The railroad project intends to reach the region bringing several improvements in all areas. According to the Ministry of Infrastructure (Minfra), it is estimated that at least 30,000 jobs will be created with the construction and implementation of the railway lines already authorized in the region, in addition to all the movement caused by the entire process of construction will promote and warm up local commerce and economy in a considerate way.

“We have a perspective on the generation of direct and indirect employment, which may exceed more than 30 thousand vacancies. This is the major point of development and job creation that the railroads can bring to the State”, testimony given by Jaime Verruck, owner of Semagro. , “It's practically R$1 billion, just on the stretch from Três Lagoas to Aparecida do Taboado. In the 345 km of the Nova Ferroeste stretch of Mato Grosso, which goes from Maracaju to Mundo Novo, there are more than R$ 4 billion, thus totaling R$ 5 billion to be invested in the coming years in Mato Grosso do Sul.”

This work is a Public-Private partnership, where several companies will be involved in the investment sector and in the construction of these railroad networks of the Pantanal railroad: Eldorado Brasil Celulose, MRS and Suzano, for example, are some names of companies that invested in the project. 

These railways, which should start construction by 2024, will also bring many technological innovations, which will help to facilitate even more the organization, distribution and flow of agricultural and mineral products that will be transported by these trains. Functions in the part of train automation, such as dynamic scaleslike ours from MASSAwhich facilitate the weighing of grains in the wagon. Changes like these will optimize and facilitate the entire process, in addition to making transport cheaper. 

How is transport currently carried out?

Today, the transport of all these loads present in the region is done, for the most part, through highways and another part by railroads, which arrive at the ports. 

However, this road system is proving to be completely outdated and its dependence has already been shown to be dangerous several times. The railway line does not depend only on fossil fuels to get around, causing a much smaller environmental impact and less harmful than any means of road transport. 

In addition to this, other problems, which can be solved with the construction of the Pantanal railroad, still surround the current transport system. The time spent on the road is much higher than the time spent on the rails, but not only that, the cost also ends up being higher. With the construction of the new railroad, it is estimated that the cost of transporting grain from the Pantanal railroad region will drop by up to 30 percent, according to experts interviewed by the G1 in the article that can be found here.

Production of Mato Grosso do Sul

Located in the center-west region of the Brazilian territory, the state of Mato Grosso do Sul has an area equivalent to Germany, with a population of more than two million inhabitants, it is a state that bases its economy almost entirely on rural production. , which includes extractive agriculture, livestock and mineral extraction. 

Thus, due to its location, where it borders states considered large consumer centers, such as São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Paraná, its rural industry meets a demand of considerable level and numbers, which requires efficiency in both production and distribution of products. agricultural products. 

Therefore, the Pantanal Railway arrives with strength to promote the development of the entire area that will be occupied by it. Without exceptions, the railway network, when implemented, will bring quick and practical benefits in the process of transporting agricultural products, such as soy, corn and sugar.

As already mentioned, experts estimate a reduction of 30 percent in the value of transport through these railroads, in relation to what is currently done by highways. With the cost of transport being reduced, therefore, the final value of the product will also fall, causing a cascading effect of benefits. 

It is past time for the country to opt for more efficient, sustainable and faster means to solve problems that have been facing us for years. With the new Brazilian railroad framework, we are now able to have a direction to implement an efficient and useful rail system that will serve more and more areas of this continental country that is Brazil. 

The lines that are being approved and built around the Brazilian territory aim to make both transport and the transported product more accessible. The time gained by rail transport is of utmost importance for the continuity and stability of large-scale production of all types of agricultural products. 

As one of these projects, the railroads that are being built in the Pantanal region, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, will come to assist in the process of modernizing our national transport.