Daily paper, Público, reported on Wednesday that the company was trying to sell three 100-year-old steam engines for scrap, which caused an outcry among train enthusiasts who said the locomotives should be saved for their historical and museum value.

The steam engines were bought in 1913 and 1923 from Henchell & Sohn Kassel and they had been were parked at Régua and Tua stations for decades.

CP said on Friday the National Railway Museum would be given another chance to assess the engines and that it was willing to sell the engines to any credible entity that was able to avoid its degradation and ensure its preservation.