ÖBB Rail Cargo Group (RCG) has formed a new subsidiary in Belgrade. Rail Cargo Carrier - Southeast d.o.o. has made Serbia the 13th country in Europe in which RCG offers sustainable rail freight transport with its staff and locomotives. The new railway undertaking will mainly provide transit services between Turkey and Central and South-Eastern Europe, thus strengthening RCG's market-leading position in Turkey.
RCG CEO Clemens Först explains: "As the sustainable logistics backbone of the European economy, we are now also able to offer Serbian industrial companies an efficient and sustainable connection to our network (TransNET). Besides cost advantages and increased quality, in-house traction in 13 countries also offers a higher degree of flexibility. This means, for example, that we can now carry out transports to Turkey on two alternative routes – via Romania and Serbia – to be more resilient to infrastructural restrictions.
For RCG, the connection with Turkey has huge potential for sustainable, climate-friendly rail freight transport. As it stands, Turkish foreign trade is still heavily dependent on truck transport. Rail currently accounts for only about one percent of Turkey's exports. By establishing the company in Serbia, RCG is ensuring that rail freight transport in South-Eastern Europe expands.
