Carlos Slim’s Grupo Carso will have to assume responsibility for the construction of a section of the Line 12 subway, but it will not lose current government contracts or be blocked from future work, according to a person close to President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
An independent investigation published Wednesday revealed that the accident, which killed 26 people when part of the elevated section of the line collapsed, was caused by construction errors. Grupo Carso built the part of Line 12 that yielded; According to the report, it was missing bolts and had problems with welding and with the concrete used.
The catastrophe will not jeopardize Carso’s chances of winning future tenders as long as the company complies with any penalty imposed on it, according to the person familiar with the government’s perspective, who asked not to be identified.
Arturo Elías Ayub, Slim’s family spokesman and son-in-law, declined to respond to a request for comment.
The scandal was a blow to Carso’s reputation. It also caused a collapse in the approval rating of the Foreign Secretary, Marcelo Ebrard, who was mayor of the capital when the line was built, and the current mayor, Claudia Sheinbaum, following media reports that the construction was underway. rushed and maintenance was inadequate. Both politicians, members of López Obrador’s Morena party, have been cited as possible candidates in the 2024 presidential elections.
López Obrador is unlikely to be too harsh on Carso or Slim, due to their prominent roles in other government infrastructure projects, and because the president gains market credibility by maintaining a relationship with the billionaire, according to Duncan Wood, a senior adviser. of the Institute of Mexico.
“He doesn’t want to get into a fight with Slim,” Wood said. “Your relationship is too important to be jeopardized. It needs Slim in terms of infrastructure spending ”.
