Portugal rail freight faces further Sines delays as Évora Elvas certification slips

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Portugal’s new Évora to Elvas rail link is facing further delays after theft, vandalism and certification bottlenecks disrupted preparations to open a key freight corridor connecting the Port of Sines with Spain.

The roughly 90 kilometre railway forms a central part of Portugal’s International South Corridor and is designed to give freight trains from Sines a shorter, electrified route towards the Spanish border at Caia and onward into markets including Seville.

Construction was declared complete in January, but the infrastructure still requires testing, safety validation and certification before commercial trains can use it. The latest difficulties mean that process is expected to extend into 2027.

For freight operators, the delay leaves a major piece of infrastructure physically in place but unavailable at a time when other works are already restricting rail movements across Portugal.

Portugal’s Infrastructure Ministry said theft and vandalism had affected equipment installed along the new railway.

“There are theft and vandalism acts in the infrastructure built, concretely in catenary equipment, signalling and communication, generating further constraints, with impacts on the calendar and certification plan of activities,” the government said in a response to parliamentary members from the Livre party.

The incidents have required repairs and changes to the testing programme before the railway can receive the approvals required for operation.

Certification itself has also become a bottleneck.

According to the government, Portugal has a shortage of accredited independent organisations capable of carrying out the necessary assessments. Foreign certification companies are also facing growing demand as railway infrastructure investment accelerates elsewhere in Europe.

The railway incorporates systems that are relatively new to Portugal, including ERTMS signalling and high performance catenary designed for speeds of up to 300 km/h. Demonstrating compliance for technology not previously used on this scale in the Portuguese network has added another layer to the approval process.

The latest setback has raised concern at APEF, the association representing Portuguese rail freight operators.

“The delay in the Évora Elvas railway is unfortunate. We were surprised to learn about the theft,” APEF executive director Miguel Rebelo de Sousa said.

Operators are already dealing with disruption related to modernisation of the Vendas Novas line, an important freight artery connecting southern Portugal with the centre and north of the country.

Without the new Évora to Elvas connection, trains heading towards Spain can use the Linha do Leste through Entroncamento and Elvas. That alternative involves a longer journey and includes infrastructure that is not fully electrified.

The difference matters particularly for cargo moving through Sines.

Rebelo de Sousa said the new route would provide a more efficient option for freight moving from Sines towards the Spanish border and Seville, reducing both distance and operating costs.

APEF is seeking greater predictability from infrastructure manager Infraestruturas de Portugal, warning that prolonged uncertainty increases the risk of customers switching cargo from rail to road.

The scale of the expected improvement explains the freight sector’s concern.

Portugal’s International South Corridor programme is designed to increase daily rail capacity from the current 36 trains of up to 400 metres to as many as 51 trains of 750 metres.

The new route is also expected to cut journey times between Sines and the Spanish border significantly, while allowing electric traction over the corridor and reducing operating costs.

For a port competing for Iberian and European hinterland cargo, those gains affect more than train schedules. Rail capacity determines how far inland a maritime gateway can competitively reach.

The Évora to Elvas section will initially operate as a single track, although the corridor has been designed to accommodate additional infrastructure if demand requires it.

Dynamic testing has already begun using rolling stock from Comboios de Portugal, with tests conducted at speeds of up to 200 km/h.

A further technical hurdle remains because the new catenary is designed for trains travelling at up to 300 km/h. Completing the required testing is expected to require suitable high speed rolling stock, potentially leased from Spain.

The project has a long history of schedule changes. Earlier phases were affected by design shortcomings, environmental assessment requirements, complicated procurement procedures, unsuccessful bids and legal challenges that suspended parts of the construction programme.

When Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz visited the completed railway in January, the government expected trains to begin operating around the end of 2026 or early 2027.

The latest timetable now places certification into early 2027, with recent Portuguese reporting indicating commercial services could begin around the middle of the year.