Russia to spend an additional trillion rubles on ‘Eastern Polygon’ lines

Russia will spend an additional one trillion rubles (10 billion euros) on the Trans-Siberian and Baikal-Amur railway lines. The extra financial injection is part of an infrastructure upgrade plan in Russia’s Far East. On 27 March, Russian Railways and the Russian transport ministry agreed on a framework for upgrades until 2035. The Russian transport ministry,…

Russian Railways’ revenue grows to 3 trillion rubles in 2023

Russian Railways’ (RZD) revenue has grown to 3 trillion rubles (30 billion euros) in 2023. This is an increase of 16 per cent. The growth in revenue is mostly driven by higher income from freight transportation and track access charges. RZD’s head presented last year’s financial data at a meeting with Russia’s transport ministry on…

Latvian petition against manganese ore export to Russia gaining momentum

A petition to ban the export of manganese ore to Russia is picking up the pace in Latvia. The public initiative gathered a third of the required signatures for a parliamentary debate in a single week. The Latvian rail sector has suffered from sanctions on Russia, but public opinion is heavily in favour of them.…

Russia starts rail freight service through occupied Ukrainian land

Russia has launched a rail freight service through occupied Ukrainian territories. It started working on a direct rail line to Crimea over land last year. On 15 March, Russia reported that the freight route between Rostov-on-Don and Crimea started operating. According to Oleg Kalevatykh, the deputy head of ‘Novorossiya Railways’, the first train on the…