Chile and Argentina to build interoceanic corridor

Chile and Argentina will build an interoceanic corridor between the two countries in 2012, project director Eduardo Rodriguez said Friday.

The "Aconcagua Bi-Oceanic Corridor" between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans is a passage that includes a 52-km railway tunnel connecting the Chilean city of Los Andes and Mendoza city in Argentina.

Developed by an international consortium headed by Argentine company Corporation America, the project is estimated to need an investment of 3 billion U.S. dollars.

The passage is expected to promote the economic ties between Chile and Argentina, and those between Mercosur (the Common Market of the South) and the Asia-Pacific countries.

The construction of the corridor will only start in December 2012, as some administrative issues are still pending, Rodriguez said.

Currently, the main transport route between the two countries is a mountain pass called Paso Internacional Los Libertadores, which is impassable several times a year due to its design and weather conditions, leading to high costs and low efficiency.