Freight news – Page 180
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NewsDedicated Freight Corridors are close to launch
INDIA: Following the approval of a funding agreement with Japanese banks, the first contracts for construction of the country’s two high-capacity dedicated freight corridors are due to be awarded by October, reports Raghu Dayal
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NewsCzechs and Slovaks plan freight merger
EUROPE: Czech Minister of Transport Aleš Rebícek and his Slovak counterpart ?ubomír Vážny reached an agreement to plan the merger of national freight operators CD Cargo and ZSSK Cargo on June 23. The ministers agreed to draw up detailed plans and a timetable for the merger, setting out the ...
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NewsUIC proposes intermodal growth agenda
EUROPE: The International Union of Railways has published Agenda 2015 for Combined Transport in Europe, the concluding report of the Diomis study launched in January 2006 to investigate ways of growing intermodal services. Drawn up by Kombiconsult and K+P Transport Consultants with guidance from the UIC, the study puts forward ...
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NewsRio Tinto to go driverless
AUSTRALIA: Driverless trains will be operating on Rio Tinto's Pilbara heavy haul iron ore railway in Western Australia within five years, the mining company announced on June 16. The first automation trials began in early 2007, initially using segregated tracks at 7 Mile Yard. Following the successful completion of 126 ...
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Africa miners in the railway market
AFRICA: As two European companies start work on short-term contracts to rescue the existing railway networks in the Democractic Republic of Congo, word reaches us of ambitious plans to build more than 3 000 km of new railway in that country, together with further spending on roads, hospitals and hydro-electric ...
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NewsBahrain investor buys Freightliner
UK: Freightliner Group announced on June 13 that it had been bought for an undisclosed sum by Arcapita, a Bahrain-based investment bank specialising in corporate, real estate and asset-based investments and venture capital. Subject to clearance from the European Commission, Arcapita will acquire Freightliner from 3i and Electra Private ...
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Board battle grows increasingly bitter
USA: The heated dispute between CSX and some of its major shareholders looks set to reach a climax at the company's annual general meeting later this month.
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Armenian concession starts
ARMENIA: South Caucasus Railways officially took over the management of Armenian Railways on June 1 under a concession agreement signed on January 16.
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Bogies take boxes 8 000 km further
LOW BOGIE: SCT Europe has supplied wagon manufacturer WH Davis with its Barber Low Ride 14.25 bogie for use on 57 tonne gross laden weight Super Low 45 container wagons. The 577 mm diameter wheels give the wagons a low deck height of 720 mm above the rail. This will ...
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Multipurpose wagon rolls out
WAGON: Kockums Industrier's Malmö plant has begun deliveries of 70 twin-section wagons ordered by Norwegian factory-to-showroom car transport company Autolink. Each wagon can carry 12 cars within its weld-free aluminium body. To maximise utilisation the upper deck can be lowered to enable the wagon to carry palletised cargo on ...
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NewsAlice - Darwin line for sale
AUSTRALIA: Adelaide to Darwin railway concessionaire FreightLink announced on May 19 that it had appointed UBS to advise on the sale of the business, and expressions of interest were now being sought. CEO John Fullerton said the sale 'will provide the opportunity for the new owners of FreightLink to capture ...
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Freight loco unveiled
SPAIN: RENFE has unveiled the first of 100 freight locomotives that are being built at its Villaverde workshops in joint venture with Bombardier. Rated at 5 400 kW, the 3 kV DC locos are part of the Traxx family and have a maximum speed of 140 km/h. Under a €442m ...
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Inland Railway study
AUSTRALIA: The federal government has commissioned an economic feasibility study to develop an optimum alignment for an inland railway between Melbourne and Brisbane. Transport & Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese announced on March 28 that A$15m has been allocated for the study, which ARTC is to complete by August 2009. At ...
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'Our most critical year'
Francesco Grotti of Rail Traction Company tells Nick Kingsley that Italy's first open access operator is optimistic about the future despite uncertainty over train control technology, crew deployment and locomotive procurement
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Broad gauge to Austria
EUROPE: A protocol setting out plans to study the feasibility of extending a 1 520 mm gauge line to Bratislava and Wien has been signed by the national railways of Slovakia, Austria, Ukraine and Russia. The hope is that a through broad gauge route will help to attract freight traffic ...
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Fortescue carries first ore load
AUSTRALIA: On April 6 Fortescue Metals transported its first load of iron ore mined at Cloudbreak in the Pilbara to Herb Elliott Port. The initial shipment was taken by lorry from the opencast mine to the Hunter Siding open access facility of Fortescue subsidiary The Pilbara Infrastructure Pty. It was ...
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NewsGWI buys Rotterdam port hauler
NETHERLANDS: On April 15 US-based short line operator Genesee & Wyoming Inc announced it had acquired Rotterdam Rail Feeding, an independent provider of 'last mile' haulage and shunting services within the Port of Rotterdam. With 35 employees and a fleet of 13 locomotives, RRF also provides traction, staff and related ...
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NewsGlobaltrans IPO raises US$449·4m
RUSSIA: On April 30 private freight operator Globaltrans Investment plc announced the price of its initial public offering of shares which will be admitted to the London Stock Exchange. The offer is priced at US$13·25 per Global Depositary Receipt representing one ordinary share. A total of 16 959 064 GDRs ...
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NewsExpanding to exploit an open market
RUSSIA: The country’s second biggest freight operator has announced an IPO and listing on the London Stock Exchange. Globaltrans Chief Executive Sergey Maltsev told Andrew Grantham how he views the opportunities presented by market liberalisation.
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Rajin port accord
NORTH KOREA: Minister of Railway Transport Kim Yong Sam signed an agreement with Russian Railways President Vladimir Yakunin in Moscow on April 24 clearing the way for the start of work on the reconstruction of the 54 km railway from the border station at Khasan/Tumangan to the Korean port of ...