DB Cargo with Biofuel for Diesel and Shunting Locomotives

This fuel helps the climate: Diesel and shunting locomotives from DB Cargo can now operate the last mile of supply chains without CO2 emissions using a climate-neutral fuel. With so-called HVO fuel, the diesel locomotive fleet of DB Cargo can be operated without any reduction in performance, as extensive test series have now shown.

(Mainz) With these biofuels, continuous climate-neutral supply chains are possible for DB Cargo’s customers. Even today, each freight train saves our planet about 80 to 100 percent CO2 compared to road transport. DB Cargo, as the largest freight railway in Europe, provides about 95 percent of its traction power electrically. The remaining train performance is provided during shunting, in terminals and ports, or when delivering freight cars to the DB Cargo customers’ premises. For this shunting service with freight trains weighing up to 3,000 tons, there is now an almost completely CO2-free solution.

Dr. Sigrid Nikutta, DB Board Member for Freight Transport: “We have achieved the impossible – we can operate freight trains completely CO2-neutral for our customers with alternative fuels and the existing locomotive fleet without any problems. At the same time, we are investing in new technologies and will retrofit the diesel locomotives to hybrid technology. We can therefore offer our customers tailored climate-friendly supply chains – and ultimately organize the value creation ‘Made in Germany’ in a climate-neutral way. Many customers have already signaled to us that they are waiting for exactly this: Sustainability – that is the new currency in logistics, and we are literally creating it down to the last meter of the supply chain!”

Progress for Climate-Neutral Rail

Michael Theurer, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport: “Getting the existing fleet to be CO2-free with this new biofuel is another important step towards climate-neutral rail. For many companies and their customers, the climate-neutral supply chain is becoming increasingly important. This is a great opportunity for rail that must be seized now. Especially in these times, when we urgently need to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, it is an important energy policy signal.”

Older Locomotives Also Function with Alternative Fuels

Background on HVO fuel: Even older, proven locomotives operate without restrictions with alternative fuels, without the need for complex retrofitting. The focus is on biofuels, such as the so-called Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO). This fuel is produced from biological residues and waste materials. No additional agricultural land is used for production that competes with food and feed products. The biofuel is also free from palm oil. When burned in the engine, only the amount of CO2 that was previously absorbed from the atmosphere during the growth of the plants is released.

Photo: © DB/Oliver Lang / Caption: Dr. Sigrid Nikutta, DB Board Member for Freight Transport, and Michael Theurer, Parliamentary State Secretary Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport