Brazilian Licensing Agency Halts Work On West-East Railway, Demands Documents

摘要

An arm of Brazil's Environment Ministry July 18 suspended construction of a 1,527-kilometer (948-mile) railway in the country's north, saying the developer had not complied with environmental protection conditions of its installation license. The suspension by the ministry's enforcement and licensing agency (IBAMA) halted work on the first, 530-kilometer (329-mile) stretch of the West-East Railway being laid in northeastern Bahia state. IBAMA told VALEC-Engenharia, Construcoes e Fer-rovias S.A., a government railway developer linked to the Transport Ministry, that work on the Bahia stretch did not comply with environmental protection conditions of the installation license, granted in November 2010.