New gateway to the Gulf 
Russia is stepping up its ongoing efforts to gain access to the Iranian railway network – not only on the western shores of the Caspian Sea (see also page 38 of ITJ 23-26 / 2023). Iran is willing to improve the transit of Russian goods through the eastern branches of its railway... more
Finland: e-loco to pull over 2,000 t trains 
Siemens recently delivered a Vectron electric locomotive to Fenniarail in Finland. It is the first e-locomotive to be acquired by a private railway company in this country. The locomotive has been designed for Finnish conditions and is particularly suitable as a freight... more
85,000 pallets transported in Portugal
Palletways is celebrating its 15th anniversary in Portugal this year. The country has fast become an important territory for the group. Since the launch of the Iberia network in 2008, Palletways has invested heavily in Portugal, the group said. The country is currently... more
Bringing Ukrzaliznytsia closer to EU rail network
Ukrzaliznytsia and the Rail Cargo Group (RCG) have joined forces to develop intermodal transports between Ukraine and Austria. The project envisages a regular connection between Kiev (Ukraine) and Vienna (Austria), which will be extended to Lviv (Ukraine) and Budapest (Hungary).... more
USA: JV kicks off with two refrigeration units
Schmitz Cargobull and Utility Trailer Manufacturer have launched the JV Cargobull North America (CBNA). As a first step, the partners have developed two transport refrigeration units specially designed to meet the demands of North American refrigerated freight haulers and... more
16 new east-west connections
ÖBB Rail Cargo Group (RCG) is expanding its network: the Austrian railfreight operator has launched no fewer than 16 new connections between Central Europe and Central Asia via the Central Corridor. With regular connections and transit times of around 30 days, the trains... more
Pallet network adds Greece and Cyprus
Eurodis has gained the Greek express service Geniki Taxydromiki as a new partner. The family-run company serves both Greece and the Greek-speaking part of Cyprus. Its core business is combined freight, transporting parcels and pallets in one shipment. In addition, Geniki... more
Quantron wins order for 38 zero-emission trucks
The order includes battery-electric heavy commercial vehicles and will be delivered to Hama Trucks in Augsburg, Germany. The vehicles are tractor units and rigid trucks of the Quantorn QHM BEV model with a 450 kWh battery system. Equipped with an aerodynamic package, the... more
Chinese tea to Africa by rail and sea
The first train loaded with 56,000 kgs of selenium-rich tea leaves from Chinese Hubei Province left Yichang on 12 September and arrived in Ningbo Port just two days later, China Railways reported. At Ningo Beilun Port in Zhejiang, the goods were transferred to a sea vessel for... more
TX Logistik to handle 850 waste trains annually
Demand for international waste transports by rail has risen significantly this year. By the end 2023, TX Logistik (TXL), an affiliate of Mercitalia Logistics, expects transports to triple to up to 850 trains per year. Among other things, TXL delivers urban waste across borders... more