​Adif, Puertos del Estado and the Port Authority of Huelva Sign an Addendum and Extension to the Agreement Signed in 2017

The Financial Fund for Port Land Accessibility will finance the Huelva-Seville railway line with €11 million

• The railway line between Huelva and Seville will have two new 750-metre sidings for trains
  
   
  
   

20-05-2021 (Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda). Francisco Toledo and Pilar Miranda, presidents of Puertos del Estado and the Port Authority of Huelva, respectively, and María Luisa Domínguez, General Director of Strategic Planning and Projects of Adif, in the presence of the Minister of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, José Luis Ábalos, have signed the addendum and extension to the agreement governing financial contributions of the Port Authority of Huelva under the Port Land Accessibility Financial Fund (FFATP, Fondo Financiero de Accesibilidad Terrestre Portuaria) in relation to its contribution to the improvement work on the Huelva-Seville railway line.

According to the addendum signed today, the funding of the FFATP for the work "750-metre sidings for trains on the Huelva-Seville Line", initially to be financed with 2.3 million euros for a single siding, will be increased to 11 million euros and two sidings, and its validity will be extended for another four years, until July 2024. In this way, the Salteras and Escacena stations will have 750-metre sidings.

Once implemented, the project will increase rail freight traffic and reduce unit operating costs for railway undertakings. In particular, the establishment of new regulation points on the line to allow trains of up to 750 metres to cross will result in an increase in line capacity and the maximum train length that can run on the line. Ultimately, it will have a positive impact on the reduction of external and internal transport costs.

• THE FINANCIAL FUND FOR PORT LAND ACCESSIBILITY

The Financial Fund for Port Land Accessibility, a decisive instrument to accelerate the construction of land access to ports, since adequate port connectivity is considered a strategic factor for the Spanish economy, was created in 2014, and allows ports to participate in the financing of road and rail connection projects outside their service area, enhances the competitiveness of ports, favours the intermodal transport of freight by road and rail, and the sustainability of the transport system.

The Fund has a total budget of 874 million euros to contribute to the improvement of land connections from ports to the rail network, in line with MITMA's policy of promoting connected, safe and sustainable mobility.