The National Infrastructure Agency (ANI) has extended the deadline for the submission of bids and awarding of the La Dorada - Chiriguaná railway PPP that will allow the construction, rehabilitation, improvement, maintenance and operation of the railway corridor located between the municipalities of La Dorada (Caldas) and Chiriguaná (Cesar), as well as the commissioning, operation and maintenance of rolling stock and the provision of the public railway freight transport service. 

The successful concessionaire will have to rehabilitate the railway and build an administrative building, an operations control centre, two workshops for train maintenance and a cargo transfer centre. In addition, it will have to commission and maintain the rolling stock to provide the cargo transport service, thus ensuring the continuity of the corridor's operation. Among the most important social works is the construction of the vehicular and pedestrian bridge over the Sogamoso River in the municipalities of Puerto Wilches and Barrancabermeja, and the relocation of two Educational Institutions, Santo Domingo and San José, in Cimitarra.

The corridor is projected to handle around 2.8 million tons per year in the medium to long term. Annually, it will cut 37,000 tons of CO2 emissions, benefiting up to 400,000 residents across 25 municipalities along the railway route. The La Dorada - Chiriguaná corridor saw an increase in transported goods, rising from 89,336 tons in 2022 to 143,348 tons as of 2024.

At the request of four companies interested in the La Dorada – Chiriguaná railway PPP, the tendering stage of the public bidding process scheduled for November 14, 2024, will be extended until December 20, 2024. Thus, its award will be brought forward to February 13, 2025. The adjustment in the schedule will allow interested parties to develop their offer in technical, financial, environmental, risk and social aspects.