Tren a las Nubes

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In July 2006, the consortium Ecotren was awarded a 20 year concession to build, rehabilitate and operate the rolling stock of a railroad in Salta province known as “Tren a las Nubes”, or train of the clouds. Tren a las Nubes was a passenger train for mostly tourists that ran 434km between Salta and La Polvorilla at 4,200m above sea level. Ecotren was formed by the Argentine companies Tranex, Lasami and Ecopas. Belgrano Cargas, a private operator, owned the fixed assets. The contract was awarded through a competitive tender that opened in December 2005 and included four bidders: a consortium of Ferrovias, concessionaire of the Belgrano Norte and construction firm Benito Roggio; La Veloz del Norte, Exposium America Latina and Ecotren. Bids were evaluated based upon: the bidder's experience, organization of service, benefits offered, investment plan, risk prevention programs and contingency plans for emergencies. The project was re-tendered after Trenes y Turismo (TyT), the previous operator, was accused of negligence after stranding approximately 450 tourists on high mountain passes in July 1005. Ecotren committed to investing US $15 million during the first four years of the concession to mostly rolling stock. The provincial government committed 25mn pesos (US$7.9mn) in the rehabilitation of some 60km of railways between Quijano and La Polvorilla. Operations commenced in October 2007.