Swiss state-owned operator SBB Cargo recorded CHF 2 million (€2.1M) in earnings between January and June, “marking the first break-even result in many years”. The positive semester comes as the company gets ready to make its full return into public hands at the beginning of 2027.
After the first half of last year, SBB Cargo had a loss of CHF 47 million (€50.1M). The jump back in the black “was supported by federal subsidies for national single wagonload traffic, internal efficiency measures, cost-covering transport pricing and proceeds from rolling stock sales”, the company explained.
In terms of volume, SBB Cargo International “performed positively, while declining domestic transport volumes continued to present challenges”. This has been a trend now for the SBB group, with its international branch moving five times the volumes of the national one in 2025.
Restructuring continues
The break-even reached in H1 2026 is a result of SBB Cargo’s restructuring, which saw the reorganisation of the combined transport segment and the ongoing one for single wagonload. The goal is to have an “economically self-sustaining” rail freight sector by 2033, the company said.
One of the main phases of the restructuring will take place at the end of this year, when SBB Cargo will return completely in the hands of the SBB group. In 2023, the publicly owned railway group decided to buy back the 35% of shares it sold to the consortium Swiss Combi in 2019.
The restructuring, however, was not always a bed of roses. In combined transport, dozens of jobs were eliminated, with workers either being transferred somewhere else or losing their positions, and eight terminals were closed. Moreover, SBB Cargo will close around 50 single wagonload terminals, albeit promising to keep 98% of the volumes.