MADRID — Renfe, Spain’s national railway company, has shut down its U.S. affiliate, Renfe of America, giving up on its hopes of operating the Texas Central high speed project.
Spanish newspaper El Economista reports Renfe has taken a €4.5 million Euro ($5.17 million) loss in the company’s 2024 financial report, saying that it sees “no prospect or guarantees” of recovering debt owed from the project.
The Spanish company signed a contract with Texas Central in 2021 to become “early operator” of the Dallas-Houston route, which had meant it would be involved in design and development of the project [see “Texas Central signs operating agreement …,” Trains News Wire, July 16, 2021].
The Renfe move is the latest blow to a project that ran aground in the face of political and legal opposition, largely becoming a shell company by the time the Texas Supreme Court found that it could use eminent domain powers to acquire needed land [see “State Supreme Court affirms Texas Central’s right …,” News Wire, June 27, 2022].
Texas Central resurfaced when Amtrak became involved the following year [see “Amtrak working with Texas Central …,” News Wire, Aug. 9, 2023], leading to a $63.9 million Federal Railroad Administration grant awarded in 2024. That grant was rescinded by the Trump administration in April, with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy saying development was up to the private sector [see “FRA rescinds grant …,” News Wire, April 14, 2025].
At about the same time the grant was cancelled, a new financial backer, Kleinheinz Capital Partners, emerged. A statement from that company claimed the grant decision was “good news,” and that the project is “shovel-ready;” a company representative told a Texas legislative committee that the company is being restructured to eliminate some of its $750 million in debt, and hopes to complete that effort by the end of the year [see “Representative of financial backer …,” News Wire, April 18, 2025].
Meanwhile, a group opposed to the Texas Central project is publicizing the Renfe decision, with a representative calling it “a stunning development.” That group, ReRoute the Route, says it represents a business and civic coalition of opponents, but none have been identified.
Expected result… RENFE’s patience finally wore thin in the USA.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Note that while leaving the US market, RENFE is studying the future of its presence in the rest of Europe. While operations in France could come to an end, the Spanish rail company has entered the Italian market with the purchase of 33% of Longitude Holding, parent company of Arenaways. It is also consolidating its expansion in Central Europe through Leo Express, which doubled its revenue and passengers in 2024.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün