A technical report on infrastructure and logistics that began to circulate among the governors of the Argentine provinces has once again raised alarms about one of the main challenges the country will face in the coming decade: the need to carry out strategic works to prevent infrastructure shortages from limiting mining and energy development.
The document, circulated among provincial leaders, states that Argentina's logistics system will have to go from moving around 128 million tons per year currently to almost 194 million tons by 2035, which represents an increase of more than 50%. This growth is not only due to mining activity, but to the total movement of cargo in the country, which includes industrial, agricultural and energy production.
In this scenario, San Juan appears as one of the provinces that will face the greatest challenges due to the development of copper projects that are at different stages of progress. The report warns that logistics demand will begin to increase even before the mines enter production, since it will be necessary to transport machinery, inputs and materials for the construction of the ventures. Specialists estimate that the greatest production volume could be reached between 2032 and 2035, although pressure on infrastructure will begin several years earlier.
The study identifies several critical points for the province. These include National Route 40, both to the north and to the south, and the comprehensive development of the National Route 150 corridor, considered strategic to connect mining production with international markets. Another aspect noted is the lack of an international pass with commercial capacity to Chile. Currently, San Juan has the Agua Negra Pass, enabled mainly for tourism and civil transit purposes, but without the necessary infrastructure for the permanent transport of heavy loads. Although years ago a pilot test was carried out that allowed lime to be transported through that corridor, the experience was not continued. According to the report, to turn Agua Negra into a stable commercial pass, it will be necessary to develop new works, establish specific safety protocols and adapt logistics to allow coexistence between tourist traffic and cargo transport.
The document also highlights the need to recover rail transport as a complement to the road system. In this sense, the possible progress of the Belgrano Cargas tender is seen as an opportunity to improve the region's logistics competitiveness, although for the moment there are no concrete definitions. In addition, the possibility of developing in the future a new international pass through the Calingasta department is mentioned again, an alternative that has been analyzed on several occasions, although still without defined projects.
The report argues that the main bottleneck will not only be the available infrastructure, but also the time to execute it. Although the horizon is 2035, the works must be ready much earlier to accompany the construction stage of the large mining projects that are currently under evaluation. Added to the transport needs are other challenges that are already being analyzed in San Juan, such as the availability of housing, services, education and health to absorb the population growth that mining development could generate.
In this scenario, the study states that the planning of routes, international corridors, railways and logistics centers will be decisive for the province to be able to fully take advantage of the potential of copper and prevent infrastructure from becoming the main obstacle to economic growth. The definitions that are taken in the coming years will be key so that the mining takeoff is not frustrated by a lack of works.
