In June 2023, a RITES Limited (a public enterprise under the Ministry of Railways of Government
of India) delegation visited Chile to discuss railway cooperation and met with authorities from State
Railway Company (EFE) and the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications.

In December 2023, EFE shared with RITES the technical specification on the railway gauge, which
showed a high compatibility with RITES trains. During August 2024, a delegation from RITES
participated in the 2nd India-Chile Joint Commission Meeting co-chaired by Foreign Ministers of India and Chile where railway cooperation was discussed and Chile encouraged Indian companies like RITES to participate and to send delegations for discussions with Railway companies in Chile.

Sunday 8 September: Rites delegation arrives in Chile

Monday 9 September: RITES delegation met with Ambassador of India and brief her on their work, meeting plans and overall intention during their visit to Chile.

They discussed general topics on their upcoming meetings with authorities and stakeholders in Chile for cooperation in the field of Railways.

Monday 9 September: The Indian official delegation from RITES met with President of EFE, Mr. Eric Martin and his team, to discuss India-Chile cooperation in railways. Among the topics discussed were, participation on public tenders, provision of consultancy services and technical compatibility with Chilean railways.

RITES also explained their work in foreign countries and their expertise in operation and training of local staff for maintenances of locomotives and trains, finance alternatives for supporting exports of new locomotives and short distance trains.

Other topics included their signalling system and a partnership to transfer technologies and improve processes. They later met with EFE technical team to discuss issues regarding the tender for 8 locomotives to EFE and other important aspects regarding their participation in future projects.

Tuesday 10 September: RITES met with Latam SpA, a local consultancy company to explore possible partnerships for future collaboration in Chile.

Tuesday 10 September: The delegation from RITES met with InvestChile to explore investment opportunities in mining and infrastructure sector. The meeting aimed at finding ways to participate in local tender and private investment opportunities through a local partner and talked about investment visa for foreign companies with business or operation in Chile.

Wednesday 11 September: Ambassador hosted a networking lunch for RITES delegation with officials
from the Embassy of India, the India-Chile Chamber of Commerce (CAMINDIA) and representative from Latam SpA to explore collaboration and partnerships between RITES and the private sector in Chile.

Wednesday 11 September: RITES held a meeting with the India-Chile Chamber of Commerce (CAMINDIA) to discuss avenues to participate in the Chilean market and to find local partnerships for upcoming bids.

Thursday 12 September: Official team from RITES India metwith President and CEO of the National Mining Society (SONAMI) to discuss business cooperation opportunities in Chile. SONAMI provided insights to RITES for collaborating with private railway companies, The Mining Industrial Suppliers Association, the Infrastructure Policy Council, and talked about challenges for pivoting from road & piping towards railways for transport of concentrates to ports.

Thursday 12 September: The official team of RITES met with officials of Vice Ministry of Transport of the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications (MTT) to discuss cooperation between India and Chile in the field of railway and infrastructure.

The MTT explained its role as supervisor of EFE and other railway companies and shared interested in RITES experience and capabilities with roll-on roll-off for transporting heavy machinery and vehicles. They also discuss of possible upcoming projects for expanding ports in the north and even the possibility of singing and MoU between Ministry of Railways India and MTT.

Thursday 12 September: RITES team hosted a farewell dinner and to brief and summarize their meetings,
highlighting opportunities, challenges and next steps to enhancing their participation in Chile.

Member of teams are as under:
Mr. Rajesh Raheja, General Manager, RITES
Mr. Ramavatar Meena, Senior Manager, RITES

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