EFE Trenes de Chile launched a thrice-weekly freight service between the city of Teno and the port of Valparaíso on December 11, carrying goods including refrigerated fruit for loading onto Maersk ships at the Terminal Pacífico Sur Valparaíso.
CER Cargo Holding of Hungary, ÖBB Rail Cargo Group of Austria and RZD Logistics of Russia established a trilateral joint venture on December 14 to provide ‘competitive and reliable’ freight services between China, the CIS, southern Europe and the Balkans. CEO of Rail Cargo Group Clemens Först said ‘we will transform the route via Ukraine and Hungary into a second, major axis leading to new capacity, fast transport times and efficient onward distribution in Europe.’
Sinara Transport Machines is to supply the EVRAZ West-Siberian Metallurgical Plant in Novokuznetsk with two TEM14 and two TEM10 diesel shunting locomotives and provide staff training. ‘This contract marks the beginning of deliveries of our innovative TEM10 series shunting locomotive to EVRAZ’, said STM General Director Anton Zubikhin. ‘We are confident that the diesel locomotive will prove its best in terms of its high performance and efficiency.’
On December 8 a memorandum of co-operation for the organisation of container transport on the China – Europe – China route was signed between UTLC ERA, Kaliningrad Railway and the seaports of Kaliningrad oblast. The agreement provides for the guaranteed acceptance of container trains and timely execution of all freight operations, with the aim of increasing traffic through the exclave by at least 190 000 TEU during 2022.
VTG Rail Russia has awarded RM Rail’s Ruzkhimmash a contract rto supply 250 Type 13-1258-01 container wagons with a capacity of 72 tonnes, 23·5 tonne axleload and service life of 32 years. They are to be delivered in 2022 and will be used for tank container traffic in Russia.
Iarnród Éireann has awarded Geismar Italia a contract to supply bogie ballast plough wagons to operate with its High Output Ballast System wagons supplied by Wabtec in 2010.
Steelmaker ArcelorMittal has awarded CFL Cargo a new contract covering the transport of raw materials to its main production sites in Luxembourg, internal transport, and shipment of finished long products via its single wagonload network. The contract included provision, repair and maintenance of specially adapted wagons.
ÖBB Rail Cargo Group has made its Lenzing and Wien Freudenau warehouse sites climate neutral, working with climate protection consultancy ClimatePartner to calculate the corporate carbon footprint including energy, heating, business travel, office supplies, waste and other relevant emissions. Those that cannot be completely avoided are offset by supporting climate protection projects including the Karwendel Nature Park, forest protection in Brazil and wind energy in Turkey.