"We are fighting for every passenger in dispute", said the president of Renfe, Raül Blanco, a few days ago in Madrid. Indeed, the competition of the public operator with the two private companies - Iryo, owned by Trenitalia, the transalpine public company, and Ouigo, owned by the French State - which, for the time being, have started to operate the high speed in Spain it is, in essence, a matter of tariffs. This is indicated by the latest report of the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) on high-speed passenger rail transport. According to the supervisor, this fight has managed to reduce travel prices by 40% compared to the period of Renfe's monopoly, but it has also triggered an unprecedented war between the Spanish Government and the Galician company, which is the one that collapses, quarter after quarter, the amount of the tickets.
The Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, has come to speak of "dumping" by the French operator, which is defined as a low-cost company. According to the latest data from the CNMC, taking as reference the journey between Madrid and Barcelona, the average price during the last quarter of 2023 was 37.43 euros in Ouigo. Renfe, for its part, charged 62.39 euros per journey for its AVE trains and 43.88 euros for AVLO, the low-cost public company. Iryo, on the other hand, remained at intermediate rates: 43.10 euros per ticket. Compared to last year's prices, Renfe lowered its AVE fares by 20%, compared to an 11.4% reduction by Ouigo. The competition, therefore, was fierce and is repeated on the journeys between Valencia (where Renfe had to reduce tickets by up to 23% year-on-year in the last quarter of last year), Seville and Malaga. The political position of the Ministry of Transport: the business strategy of Ouigo, to reduce in such an aggressive way the rates in the search to gain market share, is an exercise of "unfair competition", remark sources of the department of Puente . The Spanish Executive considers that, without the endorsement of the French State, owner of the low-cost operator through SNFC, it would not be possible to do so.
Ouigo has not minded incurring losses during the almost three years that it has been operating in Spain (in May). 36 million was left in 2022. The operator is asking for time and claims that its roadmap foresees achieving financial balance this 2024. Its leadership has responded to the Government's accusations and has affirmed that the return on its investment is close, this year or next. "It is the first time that we have been criticized for having low prices", said the president of Ouigo España, Alain Krakovitch, in response to Puente. Dumping or simple aggressive trade policy? "We don't receive subsidies", he replied, referring to Renfe. The French operator defends itself by putting investment figures in Spain on the table. Hélène Valenzuela, general director of Ouigo, emphasized that the company has invested 700 million in rolling stock in Spain, which has more than 1,000 million reserved to pay the fees it will pay to Adif over the next ten years (the ministry questions the investment) and which generates 400 direct and 2,000 indirect jobs. This 2024 Ouigo plans to launch new routes to Valladolid, Málaga, Elche or Murcia. Valenzuela emphasized that several municipalities have contacted them to request their services.
According to Puente, who has never questioned the liberalization of services, the situation is unsustainable and Renfe is the victim. The company announced that it incurred losses last year despite closing with the second highest number of passengers since 2006, 522 million tickets. Blanco, its president, acknowledges that he is making great efforts to adapt to a regime of free competition, but he also demands "reciprocity". The Spanish operator is trying to reach Paris and the French State has not yet provided the necessary permits. For Renfe, the project is "vital", and even more so when the Olympic Games are held in the Gallic capital in a few months. The Government does not understand slowness while the high speed war in Spain does not glimpse peace.
