The Portuguese railway company CP – Comboios de Portugal will enjoy greater financial and managerial autonomy after being reclassified as a market entity for statistical purposes, in accordance with European rules applied by Eurostat.
The change does not affect its status as a public operator or its public service obligations, but it reduces the budgetary constraints imposed on the company and gives it more flexibility for investments and management decisions.
According to the company, CP will no longer be included in the state’s budgetary scope, as it covers most of its costs from its own revenues. As a result, its accounts will no longer be consolidated within the general government sector and will no longer be directly counted toward the public deficit.
Greater freedom for investments and management decisions
The new legal and institutional framework, presented by the company, is expected to reduce the application of stricter budgetary rules and strengthen the operator’s financial and managerial autonomy. CP says this change brings its operating model closer to a management approach more in line with the business environment, with greater agility in decision-making.
The company states that, starting in 2027, the new statute will provide it with better conditions for planning and implementing strategic investments, particularly in fleet renewal and modernization, increasing service reliability, and improving the offering for passengers.
CP remains a public operator
Although the change is significant for the company’s operations, CP emphasizes that it remains in the state-owned enterprise sector and will continue to be subject to the transparency, oversight, and control obligations applicable to public companies.
The company also insists that this institutional evolution does not call into question its status as a public rail operator nor the Portuguese state’s commitment to citizens’ mobility and territorial cohesion.
At the same time, public rail service would remain fully guaranteed. CP specifies that public service obligations will continue to be defined and guaranteed by the state through the Public Service Contract, as well as through the regulatory and supervisory mechanisms applicable to the state-owned enterprise sector.
The company is also preparing for a more competitive environment
CP links this change to the liberalization of the railway sector, stating that the new framework will provide it with better conditions to operate in competitive markets, including in the area of future high-speed services.
The company’s message is that greater autonomy should allow it to respond more quickly to both the demands of the railway system and passenger expectations, at a time when public operators are under increasing pressure for efficiency and modernization.
CP: the company’s mission remains unchanged
The Chairman of CP’s Board of Directors, Pedro Moreira, emphasized that the company’s mission remains the same, even if the institutional model within which it operates changes.
“CP’s mission remains unchanged; only the legal and institutional framework is changing, which allows us to have greater autonomy, within a framework that seeks to balance efficiency, sustainability, and the public interest, while also entailing a greater responsibility to continue ensuring, with rigor and commitment, CP’s future sustainability,” said Pedro Moreira.
The official added that the operator has managed to achieve positive results in recent years, a factor the company cites as one of the foundations for this change.
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