Slovakia is part of the European countries which encourage railway transport, an objective reflected in the investments and projects initiated, but also in the measures adopted by the authorities. The development of railway freight transport is a key element of the drafted and implemented policies. An example leading to the right direction was the implementation of the tariff reform: in 2011, Slovakia significantly reduced the charges for freight transport from 10 Euros/train-km to 3.5 Euros/train-km due to the additional financing granted by the government, funds which cover most of the revenues gap. Also, the authorities have taken a stand in reforming the road infrastructure tolls so as to balance road tolls with track access charges.
The latest measure for the development and consolidation of railway freight transport was adopted by the government in July 2013 and refers to the change of structure of freight operator ZSSK Cargo by setting up three subsidia-ries. This objective also includes economic consolidation measures and the continuous development of the operator. “I consider the approval of these measures as an important milestone in the process of gradual emancipation of the rail and road freight transport in Slovakia. Its fulfilment is an important step towards achieving the sustainable development and equitable management of the company”, said Chairman and CEO of ZSSK Cargo Mr. Vladimir Ľupták.
Most of the measures for the consolidation of ZSSK Cargo will be implemented by the end of 2014 and concern the establishment of the three subsidiaries: management of the car fleet, repair and maintenance of the cars and locomotives and supply of intermodal transport services.
“ZSSK Cargo will continue to be a provider of traffic and transport services and also services of transhipment and re-pumping. It will cooperate very closely with subsidiaries in the area of leasing of required number of wagons, providing the services for locomotives and rolling stock, traction performance and implementation services,” pointed out Ľupták.
During the second phase of consolidation the experienced partners will enter the subsidiaries, while ZSSK Cargo retains an ownership interest and participation in corporate governance. ZSSK CARGO will use the financial resources gained by the entry of partners for the progressive debt elimination and development of the company in the field of technology and the fleet of locomotives. The internal restructuring will not include further reduction in the planned number of employees, but the stabilization and development of human resources.
Thus, Slovakia’s Government plans to grant EUR 141.5 Million to the railway freight operator and to create the three new subsidiaries, apart from ZSSK Cargo, as part of the measures for the development of the railway freight transport system, shows a proposal adopted by the government.
For this purpose, rail freight transport will be compensated for half the sum paid to the infrastructure manager (ŽSK) in 2010. Operators will have to divide the EUR 74 Million. For the timeframe 2014-2016 the track access charge will be reduced and this measure will cost the state EUR 67.5 Million.
“Railway freight transport demands financial support. If the freight carried by rail today would have been directed to roads, the number of trucks could have increased by 1 million this year”, declared the spokesman of the Minister of Transport, Martin Kóňa.
The Ministry of Transport estimates that the company operating the freight cars will have a profit of over EUR 3 Million/year, and the second subsidiary (dealing with the repair and maintenance of cars and locomotives), the ministry hopes to be able to activate a balanced budget. For the third subsidiary (the intermodal transport operator), the ministry estimated a profit of EUR 2 Million/year.
According to the local media, the future division of ZSSK Cargo could be affected by the process with Lancillor Limited, the Cypriot company which demands EUR 82 Million for the profit lost during the mandate of Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar (prime minister between 1990-1991; 1992-1998). Therefore, the current Minister of Transport Jan Pociatek plans to ask the Minister of Justice to solve the situation, as no decision on the case has been made yet.
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