Electric freight trains pulled as costs mount up

NICHOLAS EARL

DB CARGO UK, one of Britain’s biggest rail freight operators, is pulling its electric trains from service and replacing them with diesel models.

The firm, which is owned by German state railway Deutsche Bahn, blamed the high cost of energy which has made the trains too expensive to run.

It announced last week that its 24 class-90 electric engines would either be sold or scrapped and its class-66 diesel vehicles would be used instead.

In a note to staff, DB Cargo chief executive Andrea Rossi admitted that the move presented a challenge to the company’s green credentials.

“We are facing acute economic challenges, but this does not mean our actions will be at the expense of decarbonisation,” he said.

The freight boss also confirmed DB would continue to lobby for the devel- opment of cleaner synthetic fuel to use in its diesel engines.

Rail freight accounts for about 10 per cent of surface freight moved in Britain, with the government aiming to boost the sector. Earlier this year, transport secretary Mark Harper said: “We cannot overstate rail freight’s untapped potential for green growth.”

However, total freight moved by rail dropped seven per cent year-on-year in the quarter to March, according to the Office for Road and Rail.

Partly to arrest this decline, the government has set up a strategic freight unit to oversee new growth targets.

DB’s decision to ditch its electric trains follows a similar move by rival Freightliner in 2021, which temporarily axed electric trains due to costs.

DB Cargo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story was first reported in The Sunday Times.