Renfe Freight seeks industrial partner

摘要

The board of Spanish operator Renfe has approved a plan to select an industrial partner for subsidiary Renfe Freight, which it plans to transform into a logistic operator in an effort to curb losses which in 2014 totalled €54m. Renfe is also hoping to increase rail's modal share, which is currently less than 5%. Renfe will launch an open tender to select a single partner which will hold a maximum 49% stake in Renfe Freight. The operation will be carried out by increasing the total capital of Renfe's subsidiary. The process will now have to be approved by the Spanish government, which will also specify its timeline, along with the details of the public tender and the total value of the capital increase. Renfe Freight has been aligned lately with German Rail (DB), with whom an agreement "to cooperate in different issues, such as the market liberalisation process" was signed in 2013.