UKRAINIAN Railways (UZ) has registered an operator in Poland, Ukrainian Railways Cargo Poland, marking its entry into the European Union (EU) market.
“We are integrating Ukraine’s rail freight system into the European network and starting to develop a fully-fledged freight operator in the EU,” says UZ chairman, Mr Yevhen Liashchenko. “The main principles of our international division will be close ties with foreign partners, transparency and competition to ensure a worthy representation of UZ in the international arena.”
Ukrainian Railways Cargo Poland is expected to provide a comprehensive freight service; coordinate with other European operators, shippers and border crossings; operate a fleet of 1435mm-gauge and 1520mm-gauge rolling stock; and manage UZ’s rolling stock abroad.
“The creation of such a company is dictated by the need to develop and grow Ukraine-European Union freight turnover and is one of the components of UZ’s strategy to build and develop freight transport by rail,” says UZ management board member, Mr Vyacheslav Yeryomin. “It is also one of the components of the strategy to provide a comprehensive door-to-door transportation service.”
UZ carried 12.4 million tonnes of freight in June, up 32% compared with June 2022 and up 8% compared with May.
UZ reopened two lines to the Polish border totalling 68.3km in February after a modernisation project which took less than a year.
