Renfe lands in Italy to compete with state-owned Trenitalia

Renfe has been working for months to land in Italy. As the president of the state-owned company told EXPANSIÓN on November 17, Raul Blancopromoted its growth plans abroad, which in addition to France, UK, Central Europe (Leo Express) and Portugal, figure too Italy, a market dominated by state-owned Trenitalia.Renfe’s biggest competitor in Spain at high speeds. Irio.

Renfe wants to counterattack on Italian soil. The strategy is different. Instead of moving to the high-speed segment, liberalized since 2012 and having only two operators (Trenitalia and Italo), The Spanish group wants to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the regional rail market through a public service obligation (PSO).

The Spanish operator is negotiating with LongitudeItalian company managed sand familyFor jointly operate two lines in Piedmont. Near services that Trenitalia stopped providing in 2012 and which the regional government now intends to resume following an offer made by Longitude through its brand Arenaways. These are corridors connecting cities Chewa-Ormea And Savigliano Saluzzo Cuneo.

According to information accessed by EXPANSION, Renfe and its partner want resume service with 10-20 circulations per daydepending on the runner and the time of year, from 2025

. To launch the project, the promoters only require from the Piedmont administration annual subsidy of about 3.5 million euros with which you can offer an attractive daily rate with the option of weekly, monthly and annual subscriptions.

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In that Under its 2034 business plan, Arenaways plans to serve more than 271,000 passengers per year from 2025, reaching almost 350,000 travelers by the end of the period.

Renfe’s Italian offering is not isolated and its aim is to continue to grow. The project was presented at Piedmont Mobility Agencyin addition to expanding frequencies and creating additional services such as tourist trains, proposes to reopen other lines such as Santi-Arona, Novara-Varallo-Sesia and Alessandria-Ovada.

Renfewho did not want to comment on this operation, sees European regional transport as an opportunity to expand its presence abroadthanks to the experience gained in Spain. The state company manages the surrounding areas as a monopolist. and transportation over medium distances through OSB, What is financed under a program contract until 2027 worth 10 billion euros.

The Spanish company has already applied for tenders in France. and now wants to join the Italian partner through a formal expression of interest, which enjoys the support of Piedmont, but which today not insured. Trenitalia responded immediately to Longitude’s proposal and asked the Regional Administrative Court of Piedmont to suspend the Arenaways project for precautionary reasons.. A few days ago The court rejected Trenitalia’s appeal. The Italian monopoly also demanded damages.

In parallel, Trenitalia, which suspended circulation in 2012, has submitted a proposal to restart the two lines. Meanwhile, Piedmont also received offer from local company GTE (Grandi Treno Espressi).

The protection of Trinitalia occurs at the moment when Spain demands from other EU economiesespecially French, a fair deal that allows Renfe to operate normally outside of Spain. “We are suffering from disloyalty on the part of France because we continually prevent the introduction of Renfe’s AVE trains on the line to Paris,” said the head of the Spanish transport authority. Oscar Puente

a few days ago, at the same time He criticized the price war on Spanish high-speed train giants SNCF and Trenialia, which are not opposed to “losing a lot of money” in the commercial battle.

Puente supports Renfe’s international strategy, which drew up its first international subsidiary under the name Renfe Proyectos Internacionales. The subsidiary has equity capital of €9.1 million as a result of cash contributions from the parent company, inclusion of 50% of the Spanish company in the Czech operator Leo Express and the newly created subsidiary in the USA (Renfe of America LLC).

Basically, Italy will also be part of the perimeter of this company under the leadership of Inmaculada Gutiérrez., a competition economist who joined the company in 2020. The railway group has set itself very ambitious goals abroad. According to the strategic plan, Renfe plans to generate 10% of its turnover outside Spain, equivalent to approximately $500 million.

Renfe’s main asset abroad is high-speed corridor between Medina and Mecca (Saudi Arabia). Haramain High Speed It became Renfe’s busiest high-speed line after recording seven million passengers in 2023.