FRANCE: Open access co-operative Railcoop is planning to split into two companies in the wake of its decision to cease running freight trains and ahead of the launch of its planned Lyon – Bordeaux passenger service.
Rolling stock
Rolling stock availability remains the critical element for launching the passenger service, Managing Director Nicolas Debaisieux explained to Railway Gazette International. While Railcoop has agreements to source three three-car X72500 DMUs for its operational fleet plus one two-car unit for spares, only one of three-car sets and the spare are currently in its possession.
The co-operative plans to invest €4m in its rolling stock, sending the three trains to ACC M’s workshop in Clermont Ferrand for a general overhaul and an interior refresh. This work is expected to take six months, followed by another two months for dynamic testing and approval.
However, funding the rolling stock acquisition has been much more challenging than envisaged, and Railcoop is in need of more investment. Although it had secured an injection of €300 000 since July through its co-operative membership model, Debaisieux conceded that ‘the state of the business is fragile’. The abortive freight operations never brought in the anticipated revenue, which was expected to support the recruitment of onboard crew and procurement of a ticketing system for the passenger operation.
The cost and complexity of the rolling stock acquisition process had also made reaching a financial close more difficult, Debaisieux added. Banks were extremely wary of covering revenue risk, particularly given that there is currently no direct Lyon – Bordeaux service using the cross-country route that Railcoop intends to serve. He accepted that it was inevitable that losses would be incurred during the first few weeks of operation.
Investor-backed ‘opco’
Faced with these challenges, Debaisieux explained that the co-operative was planning to split itself in two: a public-facing service delivery arm, which would retain the Railcoop brand, and an asset management ‘opco’ to be backed by as yet unnamed ‘European institutional investors’. The co-operative would retain a stake of up to 15% in the opco
He reported that Railcoop and the potential investors had already identified €15m in potential funding, which, if secured, would support the completion of the rolling stock acquisition and refurbishment, as well as enabling the ‘opco’ to take on the revenue risk for the passenger service.
Once the fleet has been fully procured, Railcoop and the opco would establish a jointly managed rolling stock company, with Railcoop paying leasing charges in a conventional manner. Offers to invest in this ROSCO would also be made available to external parties, Debaisieux explained.
He said Railcoop was now in the final stages of preparing for the restructuring ahead of a formal presentation to its members and stakeholders, planned for October 7.
Timetabling still challenging
Debaisieux reported that ‘several pinch points’ still remained over access to the network for the passenger services, despite the paths having been agreed with SNCF Réseau. These include a requirement to turn trains around at Bordeaux St-Jean in just 10 min, which the operator considered unrealistic, and the identification of a pathing conflict with a TER service on the section between Limoges and Bordeaux.
These timetabling questions have also given rise to concerns about the fuel range of the ex-SNCF X72500 DMUs, which is 1 700 km. That posed questions about how many round trips per day could be completed without requiring access to a fuelling point.
For these reasons, Debaisieux explained that the company was now looking to launch operations on the section between Lyon and Limoges, with trains only running initially at weekends and on national holidays. Although a formal agreement to start has yet to be finalised, Railcoop still hopes to run its first trains at the ‘start of summer’ in 2024.
