Mexico withdraws Chinese consortium's high-speed rail contract

Days after Mexican government officials awarded a $3.75 billion high-speed rail contract to a Chinese consortium, they revoked it in order to give more companies a chance to compete for the contract.

Mexico's Communications and Transport Ministry announced Nov. 7 that, later this month, the government would reopen the bid process for six months.

The decision followed an outcry from some Mexican lawmakers after the government announced on Nov. 3 that it would award the contract to CSR Corp Limited and China Railway Construction, the only bidder.

The proposed project involves construction of a 130-mile high-speed rail line between Mexico City and the central city of Queretaro. The contract would cover the line's construction and five years of operation.

"We expect more participation from train makers in the new tender," Mexico's Transport Minister Gerardo Ruiz Esparza said in a Reuters news report.