This week’s round-up of business news from the global rail freight market.
Algerian national railway SNTF has awarded domestic company Ferrovial a contract to supply 800 phosphate wagons which will be used from 2027 on the Eastern Mining Railway from Jabal Onq to Tebissa and Anaba which is being upgraded to have a capacity of 13.6 mtpa. SNTF said the agreement signed on April 30 supported a major national effort to promote integration between rail operations and the industrial sector, with the aim of promoting national economic development and encouraging the development of local products.
Entreprise Générale du Cobalt, EVelution Energy and Trafigura P have signed a MOU to establish a framework for the long-term supply of cobalt hydroxide from the DR Congo to the USA via the Lobito Atlantic Railway to the Angolan port of Lobito. LAR has received $753m in financing from the US International Development Finance Corp and the Development Bank of Southern Africa. ‘Trafigura’s position as a shareholder of the Lobito Atlantic Railway, combined with our existing collaboration with EGC, places us in a uniquely strong position to deliver Congolese cobalt to international markets efficiently and at scale’, said Gonzalo De Olazaval, Global Head of Metals and Minerals at Trafigura,
CRRC is supplying seven diesel locomotives for the Minim Martap bauxite project in Cameroon. Project lead Camalco plans to purchase wagons and to rehabilitate the rail network to export up to 10 mtpa.
On May 1 Cando Rail & Terminals announced the completion of its acquisition of Savage Rail from Savage Enterprises, giving it a significantly expanded footprint across the USA and Canada with 36 wagon storage, staging, and/or transload terminals; three short-line railways; 80 first and last mile rail service operations; and access to all six Class I freight railways. Cando will maintain its global headquarters in Manitoba and plans to establish a new US headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. Mike Miller, previously SVP & Rail Services Leader for Savage, is now Chief Commercial Officer at Cando.
On May 11 Canadian Pacific Kansas City President & CEO Keith Creel today said the revised merger application filed with the Surface Transportation Board by Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern ‘doesn’t change the underlying reality that this mega-merger is unnecessary and falls well short of meeting the high benchmark set out in the STB’s updated 2001 major merger rules.’ He said ‘a combined UP-NS could place nearly 50% of US freight rail traffic in the hands of a single company that already has a troubled history, some very recent, of abusing market power to the detriment of American businesses and workers. None of this serves the public interest. None of this serves the interests of shippers. All of it puts our supply chains and economy at needless risk.’
European Loc Pool and Rail Traction Company are testing a Stadler Euro9000 loco in Italy, following its approval for use in the country. The tests are focusing on the performance capabilities of the multi-system locomotive in demanding freight operations with a view to deploying the type on the Brenner corridor between Germany, Austria and Italy, and on the Domodossola route between Switzerland and Italy.
Responding to the Australian government’s scaling back of the Inland Rail project, the Port of Brisbane said it was ‘a really disappointing outcome that means less investment in rail infrastructure in Queensland, and something that is likely to adversely impact our regions in particular. With or without Inland Rail, we must collectively work towards moving more freight off roads and onto rail, and we urge all governments to help play their part in that.’
The Port of Thessaloniki has signed a memorandum of understanding with Hellenic Train and Bulgaria’s BDZ covering the upgrading of rail links, the development of competitive freight transport services, reduced transit times and logistics costs and support for more environmentally friendly freight transport. The initiative comes as the port implements a broader investment programme centred on the expansion of Pier 6 to increase its cargo handling capacity significantly.
Former CEO of DB Cargo Dr Sigrid Evelyn Nikutta has joined the board of locomotive leasing company Nexrail. CEO Luuk von Meijenfeldt said ‘developing and introducing innovative locomotives for the non-electrified parts of the rail network that also offer superior economics for rail operators is of paramount importance for the European rail market, particularly in light of the 40+ year average age of the current fleet. Dr Nikutta’s experience in rail operations across Europe will help us capitalise on that opportunity in Germany and beyond.’
