Spain’s Ministry of Defence signs transport agreement with train operator RENFE

THE Secretary of State for Defence, María Amparo Valcarce, and the President of RENFE, Isaías Táboas, signed an agreement between Spain’s Ministry of Defence and RENFE for the transport of goods and personnel” on Monday, September 19.

The agreement between Spain’s Ministry of Defence and train operator RENFE will now be in force until 2026 after being signed at the Buenavista Palace, headquarters of the Army Headquarters.

“This agreement is of the utmost interest for the Armed Forces,” Valcarce said.

“As it is a strategic collaboration that allows the movement of goods and people to continue to be carried out safely, quickly and efficiently, and which also provides for the training of the personnel of the Army’s railway units, which are celebrating their 150th anniversary in 2022.”

The Secretary of State for Spain’s Defence added that “bearing in mind the current challenges facing our society, the international, geopolitical and energy crisis situation, the commitment to rail transport is a safe, sustainable and environmentally friendly option.”

It is estimated that the credit endowment will be very similar in the years the agreement is in force, with an amount of around €103 M expected to be reached.

The signing of this agreement also aims to provide members of the Armed Forces with specific measures to help them reconcile family and professional life, such as reduced fares, the Defence Ministry said.

Active military personnel, by their very nature and availability, are subject to successive and unavoidable changes of posting or having to leave their usual place of residence periodically, which means that they have to face additional travel expenses, it added.

“The relationship between the Armed Forces and RENFE goes back more than 100 years, with the creation of the first Railway Regiment,” Valcarce said.

“This relationship was embodied in 1991 in the first agreement between MINISDEF and RENFE for the transport of goods and personnel, an agreement that was successively renewed until 2007 with RENFE and, from then until the current year, with RENFE Operadora.”

On Friday, September 9, Spain’s Minister of Defence, Margarita Robles, visited the production plant in Asturias building VCR 8×8 ‘Dragon’ wheeled combat vehicles that “‘will help to transform the Spanish Army’.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article, do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.