Italy’s goods onto the rails
Railpool Group orders 27 locomotives, also for Italian freight traffic. Italian demand for rolling stock for freight transport solutions is increasing, and Railpool, a German leasing company for rail vehicles, is increasingly responding to this demand. The group plans to provide 42 Traxx locomotives for the Italian market.
The Railpool Group, one of the leading European leasing companies for railway rolling stock, originally opened a branch in Italy in 2020. The company leased six new Bombardier E494s to Captrain Italia at the time, in a deal that included an option for a further two locomotives. Now the corporation’s next step in the Mediterranean country is set to follow this year.
Pan-European initiative
In 2023 it is planning to expand its presence, through a large order for new rolling stock.
The move saw the group announce the construction of 27 Traxx AC3 and DC3 locomotives, including an option for a further 15 newly-built locomotives. Alstom will manufacture the engines at its plants in Kassel (Germany) and Vado Ligure (Italy), and deliver them from 2024 onwards. They will be deployed in Italy, as well as in Poland, Norway and Sweden.
Rising demand in Italy
“We’re pleased to be able to meet growing demand for rolling stock in Italy so quickly, by providing locomotives from our existing fleet, and to be able to supply the region with newly-built Traxx AC3 locomotives in future,” Railpool CEO Torsten Lehnert said.
This latest order makes the firm the lessor with the largest homogeneous fleet of Traxx DC3 locomotives in action in Italy. The order is also a great boost for Alstom. The French manufacturer of railway rolling stock recently invested in its new production facility in Valmadrera, a town about 45 km northeast of Milan, in the Lombard province of Lecco.
Kevin Cogo, Alstom’s head of Traxx Locomotives, is pleased to cooperate with Railpool, “one of our biggest customers for locomotives, with whom we already have a long-standing partnership.”