Setúbal Port: 40 million investment in rail access

The Government signed the contract awarding the works to modernise rail access to Setúbal port, a 40-million-euro project that will upgrade the rail line between Setúbal port and Praias-do-Sado, and the terminals of Sadoport, dTersado, Somincor, and cars.

These terminals include container movement, general and fractional cargo and heavy vehicle ro-ro (rol on-roll-off), solid bulk, exporting copper and zinc from the Somincor de Neves-Corvo mines, and light vehicle ro-ro, namely those that come from the Autoeuropa plant in Palmela, accounting for almost 350 thousand vehicles per year. 

As a whole, these investments will improve the operation, reliability and safety, and boost competitiveness, increasing rail transport efficiency for freight leaving this port.

Setúbal port estimates the circulation of 2 900 trains per year in 2030, which will represent a significant drop in the number of trucks on the roads in the region and the reduction of 200 thousand tonnes of CO2.

Offering competitiveness to companies

"Placing Setubal at the service of an entire axis, a backbone for the Iberian Peninsula is truly vital. This is offering this port competitiveness, it’s offering this region competitiveness, but above all it is offering competitiveness to the companies that operate in the area around Setúbal port, and without a capable port they will not be able to grow", said the Minister.

"And growing, by which I mean generating revenue is generating wealth, gross added value so the wealth can be redistributed", he said, noting the importance of Setúbal port for the companies in the region, especially the major corporations such as Autoeuropa, Somincor and Megasa, which holds the former National Steel Industry.