The next six years will see unprecedented investment into the railways across Central & Eastern Europe (CEE). The main driver is EU funding – the region will receive €150 billion between 2014 and 2020 – and the railways are a priority area for support across much of the region.
This money is much needed. After many years of under-investment, the situation around rail transport has become critical in some parts of CEE. Freight and passenger volumes are dropping because of the state of the network and the need for rolling stock investments is also huge.
Romania, my own country, illustrates the point. Romania currently operates 10,800 km of railways, only 37% of which is electrified. A huge amount of money needs to be spent on the network and over €9 billion has been earmarked from the EU funds allocated to Romania for infrastructure programmes for 2014-2020. The investment into Poland, which is Europe’s sixth largest rail network with over 19,000 kilometres of track, is set to be even more extraordinary. Between now and 2030, the Polish railways will see unprecedented investment of €25 billion.
That is why, in partnership with the Railway Industry Association, we are hosting a Central & Eastern Europe Rail Seminar in central London on 27th November. Senior rail representatives from across CEE will present the opportunities that exist in their markets and the seminar will also include one-to-one meetings with officials and a networking lunch.
As well as Poland and Romania, this will also be a chance to explore the opportunities that exist across the region’s seven other countries. For example, Austria, which has the most developed infrastructure network in the region, will still spend about €2 billion per year on its rail network until 2018; by 2026, 300km of additional track will be constructed. Slovenia, the smallest country in the region, has a railway development programme estimated to be worth €9 billion. Both Prague and Sofia plan to expand their metro systems in the next few years – complex, high-value projects in both cases – and Croatian Railways has earmarked 13 priority rail projects with a total value of €1.6 billion. I could go on and on…
British companies have exactly the kind of expertise and experience that the region needs to support its ongoing modernisation, and are therefore incredibly well placed to benefit. The first stage is ensuring that they know about the range of opportunities that exist in the region.
Whether you are a consultant or a supplier of railway equipment, there are opportunities for you in CEE. Join us on 27th November to find out more.