RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazil's high-speed train project was postponed once again due to a lack of bidders, a government official said Monday.

"We had six technology companies interested, but they did not manage to connect with the construction sector," National Land Transport Agency chief Bernardo Figueiredo said. "That made the process difficult."

The project of the 510-km high-speed train link from Rio de janeiro to Sao Paulo is estimated to cost $20.9 billion. An auction for the project was delayed in November 2010 and again in April this year due to lack of interest.

Bernardo Figueiredo said the government had decided to split the bidding process into two stages, with the first to define the technology used in the project and the company operating the line, and the second to decide on which company to build the train.

Brazil, hosting country for the 2016 Olympic Games, is expected to start the bullet train construction before the 2014 World Cup finals which will also be hosted in Brazil.