Freight news – Page 128
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NewsTransNamib orders GE locomotives
NAMIBIA: National railway TransNamib signed a US$22·7m purchase agreement for six GE Transportation C23EMP locomotives on September 11. The 1 067 mm gauge diesel locomotives are scheduled to be delivered to Walvis Bay within the next 18 to 20 months. They will be used to haul sulphuric acid ...
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NewsLandbridge design contract extended
SAUDI ARABIA: The Public Investment Fund has extended Italferr’s contract to undertake design work for the planned Landbridge. The Landbridge project comprises a 950 km double-track mixed traffic line running from the Port of Jeddah to Riyadh, where it would connect with the existing railway which would be upgraded ...
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NewsCapital Partners invests in short line group Regional Rail
USA: Private equity firm Levine Leichtman Capital Partners has acquired a stake in short line group Regional Rail. The existing management team will ‘retain significant ownership’ and continue to lead the company. Regional Rail was formed in April 2007 and has since acquired the East Penn, Middletown & New Jersey ...
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NewsMurray Basin gauge conversion to begin next year
AUSTRALIA: Civil works are expected to begin in the second half of 2016 to convert the freight lines linking Geelong with the Murray Basin from 1 600 mm gauge to 1 435 mm gauge under a A$416m programme being led by the Victoria state government. The Murray Basin Rail Project ...
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NewsLighter tank wagon for oil products
ARGENTINA: Military equipment manufacturer Fabricaciones Militares has unveiled a new 1 676 mm gauge tank wagon designed for the transport of crude oil and other heavy hydrocarbons. The self-supporting tank means that the wagon does not require a frame, offering a saving of up to 3 tonnes in tare weight ...
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NewsWork starts on Zeebrugge yard
BELGIUM: A groundbreaking ceremony on August 25 marked the start of construction of a new Zwankendamme marshalling yard to serve the Port of Zeebrugge. The yard will increase freight capacity, and also reduce the number of shunting movements required. The yard will be located on a greenfield site to the ...
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NewsFirst train arrives at Rotterdam World Gateway
NETHERLANDS: The first commercial freight train arrived at the Rotterdam World Gateway container storage and transhipment terminal on August 25. RWG said this was a milestone in start-up of ‘the most advanced and most automated container terminal in the world’, which opened in October 2014 and began 24/7 operation ...
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NewsAsciano board recommends acceptance of Brookfield offer
AUSTRALIA: The board of Asciano has unanimously recommended that shareholders accept Brookfield Infrastructure’s offer to acquire its entire issued capital, in a deal which gives the rail and port group an implied enterprise value of A$12bn. ‘After careful consideration of all the options available to the company, the Asciano ...
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NewsDecember deadline for Greek rail asset offers
GREECE: The Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund announced on August 13 that a deadline of December 2015 has been agreed for binding offers to take over state-owned operator TrainOSE and rolling stock maintenance contractor Rosco. The announcement follows the conclusion of negotiations between the privatisation agency, the government and the ...
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NewsSulawesi railway works to start in October
INDONESIA: Civil works for construction of the first section of the planned trans-Sulawesi railway are expected to start in October with an inauguration ceremony to be attended by President Joko Widodo. A groundbreaking ceremony took place in Siawung in August 2014 to launch the 145 km Makassar – Pare Pare ...
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NewsNorthern coal railway concession approved
MONGOLIA: The government has approved proposals for the Northern Railways infrastructure subsidiary of Aspire Mining to develop the 547 km Erdenet – Ovoot under a 35-year Build Operate Transfer concession. On August 10 the government authorised its Investment Agency to execute the concession agreement with NR, paving the way for ...
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NewsRethinking freight terminal operations
NORWAY: Infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket announced on August 10 that it is looking to encourage new operators to provide services at its Ganddal rail freight terminal in Stavanger and the Brattøra terminal in Trondheim. The project is a trial at the behest of the Ministry of Transport & Communications, which wants ...
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NewsISR freight locomotives delivered
ISRAEL: The first two of six GT26CW-2 diesel locomotives which are being built for Israel Railways by TZV Gredelj were unloaded at the port of Kishon near Haifa on August 5. TZV Gredelj is subcontractor to US firm National Railway Equipment for the 50m shekel order, which was placed through ...
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NewsKiwiRail seeks interest in Napier – Gisborne line
NEW ZEALAND: KiwiRail has invited proposals from freight or tourist train operators interested in a non-exclusive licence to run services on the 210 km Napier – Gisborne line on North Island. Tenders are due by September 10, with the final decision scheduled to be announced by mid-October. ‘A number ...
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NewsFinnish open access locomotive on test
FINLAND: The first of three locomotives which privately-owned Fennia Rail ordered from CZ Loko in November 2014 is undergoing trials at the Velim test circuit in the Czech Republic ahead of delivery later this month. The 1 524 mm gauge locomotive has been fitted with 1 435 mm gauge bogies ...
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NewsPort of Antwerpen seeks last mile operator
BELGIUM: A neutral operator to provide wagonload freight services within the Port of Antwerpen is being sought by Railport Antwerpen NV, a company established by the port authority, the Essenscia federation of chemical and life sciences companies and industry association Alfaport. The aim is to increase the flexibility of ‘last ...
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NewsFirst TE33A locomotive for Azerbaijan handed over
AZERBAIJAN: The first of 10 Type TE33A Evolution diesel locomotives ordered by national railway ADY was officially handed over on August 3, at a ceremony in Baku which also marked the arrival of the first Nomad Express container service from China via Dostyk and the Caspian Sea ports of Aktau ...
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NewsIsrael Railways establishes freight subsidiary
ISRAEL: Kathriel Moriya has been appointed as the first General Manager of Israel Railways’ freight subsidiary Rail Cargo Ltd with effect from July 28. The government intends to find a strategic investor to take a 51% stake in Rail Cargo Ltd, which has the exclusive right to manage rail freight ...
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NewsPartial privatisation studies included in DB restructuring
GERMANY: A six-point plan for the reorganisation of national railway holding company Deutsche Bahn AG was approved by the supervisory board on July 27, and options for the part-privatisation of the Arriva international passenger and DB Schenker Logistics businesses are to be studied. ‘DB is going to become leaner, faster, ...
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NewsChinese containers reach Rotterdam by rail
NETHERLANDS: The first train carrying containers from China arrived at the Rail Service Centre freight terminal in the Port of Rotterdam on July 23, having left Kunming on July 5. Further services are planned to arrive during August and September. The 80 containers were routed via the Zabaykalsk border crossing ...