Freight news – Page 118
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NewsParis orders battery-overhead electric locomotives
FRANCE: Paris transport operator RATP has awarded CAF a €65m framework contract to design and manufacture 12 battery-overhead electric locomotives for shunting and hauling maintenance trains on the RER network, with an option for up to six more. The 1 000 kW locomotives are to be delivered from CAF’s Bagnères ...
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NewsKansas City Southern sees uncertainty
USA: ‘Looking ahead to 2017, the company is aware of both economic and political uncertainty’, said Kansas City Southern President & CEO Patrick J Ottensmeyer when presenting the railway’s annual results on January 20. ‘However, we continue to emphasise our commitment to growth and we are well positioned to take ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
South Africa’s Transnet is to use GE’s Predix platform to obtain real-time information on the status of shipments and migrate processes such as payment, customs and inspection from paper to digital formats. Predix ‘will be key in optimising freight efficiency and bringing products to market faster and for less cost ...
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NewsCP reports record low operating ratio in ‘challenging conditions‘
CANADA: Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd has announced its lowest-ever Q4 operating ratio of 56·2 and a record low full-year OR of 58·6 for 2016, saying focused cost control helped to offset softer than expected traffic volumes. ‘While the fourth quarter was weighed down by challenging operating conditions, including unexpected and ...
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NewsKenya – Uganda construction timescale agreed
AFRICA: Meeting in Nairobi on February 2, ministers from Kenya and Uganda agreed a ‘synchronised’ timescale for construction of the 1 435 mm gauge railway planned to link the two countries. Signed by Uganda’s Finance Minister Matla Kasila, Kenya’s Treasury Secretary Henry Rotich and Transport & Urban Development Secretary James ...
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NewsCSX sees 21% drop in coal traffic
USA: The US rail industry continued to face headwinds from low global commodity prices and the strength of the dollar in 2016, CSX said when presenting its annual results on January 17. CSX generated revenue of $11·1bn last year, down from $11·8bn in 2015, with operating income of $3·4bn compared ...
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NewsUnited Wagon Co grows and diversifies
RUSSIA: United Wagon Co manufactured a total of 15 900 wagons in 2016, in line with its targets and representing a 28% increase from the previous year. Its target for 2017 is to increase output to between 18 000 and 20 000 wagons, by making more use of production capacity ...
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NewsUnion Pacific ‘fairly optimistic’ about 2017
USA: ‘While full-year volumes were down substantially year over year, we did see declines moderate in the fourth quarter,’ said Union Pacific Chairman, President & CEO Lance Fritz when presenting the company’s annual results on January 19. ‘As we worked through the challenges of the year, we remained focused on ...
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NewsRailway flotations envisaged in Indian budget
INDIA: Plans to float off several Indian Railway subsidiaries including construction arm IRCON, Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corp and Indian Railway Finance Corp were announced by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in the national budget on February 1. He said shares in the IR Public Sector Enterprises would ‘soon’ be ...
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NewsChina – Uzbekistan freight service launched
ASIA: Militzer & Münch Group and InterRail have launched a block train service between Xuzhou in eastern China’s Jiangsu province and Toshkent in Uzbekistan. The first two trains ran in January, carrying 92 20 ft containers containing steel coil. A third train is planned for February. The journey takes 10 ...
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NewsSiemens signs ‘biggest tender for locomotives in Europe’
AUSTRIA: Austrian Federal Railways signed a framework agreement for the supply of up to 200 freight locomotives on January 27, following the expiry of the regulatory standstill period which began when Siemens was named preferred bidder on January 16. The framework with an undisclosed total value covers up to 100 ...
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NewsSBB Cargo adopts new financing model for locomotive order
SWITZERLAND: Swiss Federal Railways’ freight business said it was ‘entering into new forms of financing’ when it announced an order for 18 Siemens Vectron multi-system electric locomotives on January 30. SBB Cargo International has opted to order the locomotives through LokRoll, a leasing company set up by family-owned investment group ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
European Gateway Services and TX Logistik are to increase Rotterdam-Bayern Express services from five to six departures per week in both directions from February 7. Cargo which has arrived at Rotterdam on a deep sea vessel is available in München the day after the train departs, and can be with ...
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NewsAdriatic – Baltic rail freight service launched
EUROPE: What is described as the first direct rail freight service between the ports of Trieste in Italy and Kiel in Germany was launched by TX Logistik on behalf of Turkish logistics company EKOL on January 25. There are connections with shipping services to and from Scandinavia, Greece, and Turkey. ...
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NewsRM Rail aims to increase wagon exports
RUSSIA: The development of innovative wagon designs, an increase in exports and expansion of the range of castings offered are included in wagon manufacturer RM Rail’s priorities for 2017, according to CEO Pavel Ovchinnikov. The company significantly developed its export activities in 2016, supplying wagons and components to Iran, Cuba, ...
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NewsTendering starts for Bogotá — Belencito
COLOMBIA: National infrastructure agency ANI has begun tendering for a contract worth up to 720m pesos to operate the 257 km Bogotá — Belencito route. Proposals are due to be submitted by 10.00 on February 7. Bidders are expected to include Dracol Líneas Férreas which has operated the 914 mm ...
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NewsMetafrax takes delivery of chemical wagons
RUSSIA: United Wagon Co’s TikhvinChemMash has delivered 20 chemical tank wagons to Metafrax, and is to establish a servicing centre at the chemical company’s production site. Designed to be suitable for a wide range of chemicals, the Type 15-6900-01 wagons which Metafrax plans to use for transporting formalin ...
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NewsGE diesels arrive in Karachi
PAKISTAN: More than 200 VIPs and guests gathered in the port of Karachi on January 23 to mark the arrival of the first seven of 55 Evolution Series ES43ACi diesel locomotives being built for Pakistan Railways by GE Transportation. Being supplied under a 10-year agreement valued at US$400m, locomotives built ...
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NewsBNSF announces 2017 capital investment plan
USA: BNSF Railway announced a 2017 capital expenditure plan worth $3·4bn on January 19. As with 2016’s $3·9bn capital plan, the largest element of the programme is the replacement and maintenance of infrastructure on the 52 000 route-km network in 28 US states and three Canadian provinces. This has been ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
PKP Cargo has expanded its drone fleet with Dron House‘s Bielik 3·5 kg carbon fibre design. Last year PKP Cargo began using DJI Phantom 3 and Eagle drones to monitor its trains, and has reported a 50% reduction in cargo theft. The operator says it also has gained the ability ...