Grupo México Transportes (GMXT), the largest private rail operator in Mexico, decided not to participate in the privatization of Trenes Argentinos Cargas. It was the only foreign competitor in the process and had promised investments of up to $3 billion. Its exit comes days after the government rescinded the Belgrano Cargas works financed by China.
According to Infobae, GMXT communicated that it decided not to proceed with the bidding. Sources close to the company confirmed the decision, although they did not officially specify the reasons.
The Mexican company had the backing of the United States. It had a partnership with Wabtec, a U.S. rail technology firm, and the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC) was considering financing its participation. The U.S. Eximbank appeared as a potential source of credit for the purchase of North American rolling stock.
GMXT's interest dates back to November 2025. Its CEO, Bernardo Ayala, held meetings in Buenos Aires with officials, potential clients, investment banks, the U.S. embassy, and the president of Trenes Argentinos Cargas, Alejandro Núñez.
Open access, the main hurdle
According to Infobae's reconstruction, the main point of conflict was the open access scheme. With that model, the concessionaire manages the tracks and charges tolls to other operators, but does not have guaranteed exclusive operation of the trains.
According to close sources, the terms did not clearly define how that system would work. The company feared that a bidder with low tolls and little investment would prove to be more competitive than one willing to thoroughly modernize the network. Other sources in the process pointed out that the government did not show the necessary urgency to resolve those objections.
The GMXT plan
The company proposed to operate the complete Belgrano, San Martín, and Urquiza lines, focusing on the Belgrano, which connects northwest Argentina with the ports of Gran Rosario and concentrates the bulk of grain transport and mining potential. The company had warned that without that line, it would not retain the other two.
Its goal was to transport grains, minerals, hydrocarbons, chemicals, and industrial products in containers, with trains of between 120 and 150 cars and up to 18,000 tons, like those it operates in Mexico and the United States. In Argentina, the trains are much shorter and run at an average of between 15 and 25 kilometers per hour, according to Infobae.
Who remains in the race
After GMXT's exit, the main candidate is a consortium of grain companies made up of Aceitera General Deheza (AGD), Bunge, Cargill, Louis Dreyfus, and the Argentine Cooperative Association (ACA). Other possible interested parties include the Roggio Group, which has rail experience through Metrovías, and the mining company Rio Tinto, with lithium projects in Salta and Catamarca, which could join as an investing partner of a concessionaire.
The conditions of the concession
The concessioned network comprises 7,594 kilometers of track across 16 provinces, connecting to the main ports and to Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. The concession will last for 50 years, and the opening of bids is scheduled for November 11.
Bidders can adhere to the Incentive Regime for Large Investments (RIGI) if they commit at least $200 million to track renewal and execute 40% of the investment in the first two years. If they do not obtain regime approval, the offer becomes void.
A system with low productivity
According to data cited by Infobae, the train transports less than 5% of the cargo in Argentina, compared to 26% in Mexico and 40% in the United States. The Argentine network records 0.6 ton-kilometers per kilometer of operational track, ten times less than Chile and six times less than Brazil. Official sources described the situation as a vicious circle: revenues are insufficient for maintenance, the infrastructure deteriorates, and the state subsidizes rates to compete with trucks.
Without China and without Grupo México
The privatization comes after the government rescinded in bulk the 11 works of the Belgrano Cargas that were being executed with funding from the Chinese state-owned China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC), according to the portal enelSubte. With GMXT's exit, the future of the northern Argentine cargo network lies in the hands of local groups and the large grain exporters operating in the country.
Marcos González Gava is Co-Founder of Reporte Asia and a Specialized Analyst in Business and Financial Affairs, and Cultural Matters with the People's Republic of China.
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