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Interview | European Loc Pool Disrupting the hire business European Loc Pool was established in Switzerland in 2018 by a group of highly-experienced rail specialists who saw a need for innovation in the locomotive leasing market. IRJ correspondent Quintus Vosman talks to CEO, Willem Goosen about the company’s ambitions.

UROPEAN Loc Pool (ELP) is the “We have also included other forms describes this as phase 1 with “more on newest kid on the block in the of rail transport in our strategy and the horizon.” European rolling stock leasing business plan. It is quite conceivable “We believe that a large proportion of marketE as it only started trading in that in the near future ELP will get into the current Bo-Bo multi-system 2019. The company was founded by Mr and finance freight wagons and do not meet the market Peter Spuhler in his position as CEO of passenger rolling stock. All our requirements for long-distance heavy- PCS Holding, Mr Haydn Abbott, and activities are based on full-service haul because they are not powerful Mr Willem Goosen. leases. The first steps have already been enough,” he says. “Operating long, “All three of us have extensive taken, but for the time being the focus is heavy trains across Europe often experience in the rail industry, only on freight locomotives.” requires two locomotives, which is including manufacturing, selling, ELP got off to a quick start, placing its inefficient, but has been normal practice financing and leasing,” Goosen first order for 50 locomotives with in Europe for a very long time. We explains. “We also have ‘fresh’ in August 2018. The order know that such transport is possible ambitions to get things done in the rail includes 40 Euro Dual Co-Co with just one locomotive and we have sector in Europe. Being the same locomotives with a 500kN tractive many customers operating our generation, we hope to stay in the effort, which can run on lines electrified locomotives to prove it. We are creating business for another 10 years, hopefully at 15kV 16.7Hz and 25kV 50Hz and are single locomotive operation as a new even longer. During this time, we want rated at 6.15MW in electric mode. The standard and so, potentially, all double to innovate in the market as a locomotives also have a powerful diesel traction Bo-Bo locomotives will be ‘disruptor’ in a positive sense.” IIIB engine for operation on non- redundant. Goosen says he and his two partners electrified lines. The remaining 10 “Our locomotives are more expensive believe that too little has been done to locomotives comprise Stadler’s Euro than a single four-axle unit, but cheaper innovate in the European rail industry. 9000 Co-Co hybrid, which also have a to operate because there is no need for a “For 40 years there has been insufficient 500kN tractive effort and an output of second locomotive. Our locomotives are innovation and improvement of the 1.9MW in diesel mode and up to 9MW fitted with diesel engines powerful basic products in rail transport. I am in electric mode. All of the 40 Euro enough to operate on the main line. mainly talking about rolling stock, Duals will be operational by the end of “There are at least two manufacturers especially in the freight sector, and the 2021, with delivery of the Euro 9000 with a Last Mile with a way Roscos provide services to train locomotives starting at the end of power rating of approximately 250- operators. 2022/beginning of 2023. ELP has signed 300kW. Many of our customers tell us a frame agreement for another 50 that these locomotives are expensive locomotives for which Goosen says ELP and do not meet their expectations and has arranged financing. Goosen want to change their locomotives. “Freight trains will become heavier and longer in the future with 740m-long trains as standard. But a Last Mile engine can find it difficult to accelerate

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a 2000-tonne train on even a small incline and haul it at a reasonable ELP senior manager profiles speed.” AYDN Abbott is chairman of Grindrod Logistics Group in South The Euro 9000 has an output of ELP and is also a non-executive Africa in 2012 as a consultant, followed 6.5MW on dc electrified lines and can director of British Rosco by a two-year stint as commercial obtain an additional 1.9MW boost from Porterbook Leasing. He was a member director of GPR Leasing Africa, before the diesel engine. “We are also working H of the supervisory board of Czech moving to Traxtion/Sheltam as CEO, on increasing the power rating of the private passenger operator Leo Express rolling stock leasing and infrastructure diesel engines up to 2MW by software from October 2012 to March 2020. projects. amendments, which will make the Euro Abbott was CEO of Angel Trains Peter Spuhler joined Stadler 9000 as powerful as a Vectron Dual Group, another British Rosco, from Fahrzeuge in 1987. Two years later he Mode when operating on diesel power,” June 1999 to August 2008, when he took over the company and restructured Goosen says. became CEO of the breakaway Rosco it. In 1997, Spuhler bought Werk “A Euro 9000 can haul a 2000-tonne /Angel Trains Altenrhein from Schindler Waggon and train from the Swiss-German border to International, a position he held until then expanded Stadler into Germany intermodal terminals in Northern Italy September 2010. and Eastern Europe. Spuhler has been at the same average speed as two Bo- Willem Goosen has been CEO of ELP president of Stadler Rail Group since Bos in multiple traction. That is the since May 2018. He was commercial 2018 and became interim Group CEO unique selling point (USP) of ELP.” director of GE Capital from 1994 until of Stadler Rail in 2020 due to a Nevertheless, ELP regards having 2004, followed by commercial director difference of opinion regarding the diesel engines in its locomotives as a of Babcock & Brown. He joined the strategic development of the company. stop-gap until more sustainable traction, such as hydrogen or battery acting again as a disruptor, by offering Goosen says some rail freight operators power, is available as a viable complete freight trains with innovative such as Innofreight, TransANT and SBB alternative, not just on the locomotive locomotives and wagons, and Cargo are already innovating. “We are but also refueling or recharging passenger trains for international also working on innovations and we infrastructure. operation. want to make a clear difference in the EPL hopes to start the complete market,” Goosen says. freight train business at the end of 2021 “We are already in touch with all Single locomotives by offering full-service leases for block kinds of potential customers, both large Goosen says the economics of operating trains including traction. As with the and small. They all share a passion for one Co-Co locomotive like the EuroDual Co-Co locomotives, Goosen says the innovation and understand the need for or Euro9000 instead of two Bo-Bo units equipment must be “innovative and change, particularly in the context of are compelling with only six axles bring convenience and increased the green agenda. Contact with major instead of eight and one set of onboard efficiency for our customers and users.” end customers is also essential, such as ETCS equipment. Two Bo-Bo electric He says the length of the trains must be Ikea in Sweden, the automotive locomotives cost 20-30% more than a optimised, for example with short industry and, last but not least, retail. single Co-Co but cost twice as much to couplings. “We also want to introduce Knowing our own customers and their operate, with the additional benefit of automatic couplers and distributed customers enables us to identify less wear and tear on the track. power supply from the locomotive opportunities for innovation in a “Our locomotives are specifically through the entire train,” Goosen targeted manner.” designed to cause even less wear and explains. The idea is for the locomotive ELP also wants to innovate the lease tear than a single Bo-Bo locomotive, to provide power to the wagons for product. “Eventually we want to offer a partly through an innovative bogie such things as temperature control, with different way of leasing: capacity design,” Goosen says. “We have the ability to transmit data between the leasing,” Goosen reveals. “That means managed to overcome the fears of wagons and the locomotive. “We want paying only when you really use it. The network managers about six-axle- features that make it easy for the ultimate goal is for the assets not to be locomotive track wear, especially over customer while increasing productivity included on the customer’s balance points.” and efficiency,” Goosen says. sheet - it has been mandatory to have ELP wants to start two other activities ELP also wants to have wagons operational leases on the balance sheet where it believes it can be innovative, which can carry many types of freight. since the banking crisis, but this is disadvantageous and difficult. We also offer an innovative insurance package, which is included in the rate as

European Loc Pool has ordered 40 Euro Dual Co-Co locomotives and 10 Euro 9000 Co-Co hybrid locomotives from Stadler. 35 May Euro Loc Pool_Layout 1 29/04/2021 18:16 Page 36

Interview | European Loc

standard. With us, the customer gets an all-in-one invoice once a month and that’s it.” Goosen says he is happy with what has been achieved so far. “With strong shareholders we have achieved all our financing targets, including equally strong support from financial Our locomotives are institutions. With this, we can move forward confidently with a professional specifically designed for manufacturer delivering products that “ have met all the specifications and use on the entire European requirements, especially in reliability and availability. We have gone from rail network. Willem Goosen zero to 50 delivered or ordered locomotives in less than two years which demonstrates the scale of our achievement, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. “We have a support center in Braunschweig for the handover of locomotives to customers and principle, this is a chance to create a USP or operating rules. ELP supports its maintenance. We are building a in the rail freight segment, but this customers in this process to achieve the network of maintenance workshops and innovation can also be copied by the full impact and benefits of the new, technical support points in Europe next RU. innovative rolling stock.” together with Stadler Rail Services, our “These processes are bound by very Nevertheless, Goosen says ELP has a service provider. We have strict different rules on the network headstart in the market, with a level of agreements for parts deliveries so that statements. These details are defined by risk that ELP can manage. “We believe the availability of our locomotives is as the state-owned infrastructure that we can stay two to three years high as possible. managers, who see other RUs as ahead of the rest of the market. We will “Our locomotives are specifically competitors to their own RU. Hardly certainly face competition, but for the designed for use on the entire European any of the current small, highly moment we are taking advantage of our rail network. innovative RUs are able to manage this different risk approach and our ability “The Fourth Railway Package is a process because the effort and to manage risks differently from other challenge for innovation. The role of the arbitrariness are too great. Right now, leasing companies. This stems from our rail industry has been successfully we see too much freedom on the experience, more than 70 working years limited to approval for placing rolling infrastructure side. It is not only altogether, that we have as the founding stock on the market. Authorisation for necessary to unify signalling, but an team. We have also formed a highly placing in service of new rolling stock overall strategy is also needed to skilled team in ELP, together with a and the route compatibility for each harmonise the railway system for every professional group of service providers train is the full responsibility of each detail, such as bridge loads, train in asset management, maintenance and individual railway undertaking (RU). In detection systems, train load calculation many other areas.” IRJ

36 IRJ May 2021