Green energy powers CTL Logistics trains. The freight carrier has signed a contract with PKP Energetyka
CTL Logistics will be the first freight carrier to offer transportation based on renewable sun and wind energy. The company has signed a multi-year contract with PKP Energetyka under the Green Railway programme. Under its terms, 25 percent of the energy consumed by CTL Logistics will already come from RES this year and the share of renewable energy will increase to 50 percent in 2023 and 100 percent in 2025.
The signing of the contract is another step in the cooperation between the two companies, following the signing of a letter of intent for the Green Railway® programme last April. CTL Logistics thus becomes the first freight carrier in Poland whose transports will be powered by green energy from RES, which is in line with the assumptions of building a sustainable and environmentally friendly railway. A report prepared by the IBRIS Market and Social Research Institute for the ProKolej Foundation demonstrates that progressing climate changes are forcing the companies to seek greener forms of transporting goods. Entrepreneurs from various industries see in rail transportation the greatest opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint. Increasing the use of rail transportation and the share of RES from 40 percent to 45 percent in 2030 is also envisaged in the REPowerEU plan recently adopted by the European Commission.
“I am very pleased that the first freight carrier, CTL Logistics, is joining the Green Railway® programme. This agreement is an important step towards building a green and competitive railway sector. Today, the use of energy from RES is not only an important factor in increasing the attractiveness of the carriage offer, but also an important step in strengthening the security and energy independence of the railway sector. As the findings of the study commissioned by the ProKolej Foundation indicate, the emission level is a criterion that businesses increasingly take into account when planning logistics chains,” says Wojciech Orzech, President of PKP Energetyka.
The new contract covers a period of 7 years, i.e. from 2024 to 2030, with the option of being extended by a further 3 years until the end of 2033. Meanwhile, under an additional agreement, CTL Logistics was given the opportunity to purchase energy from RES as early as in 2022 covering up to 25 percent of its requirements, which will increase to 50 percent in 2023. In three years, i.e., from 2025, the carrier will be using fully RES-based energy.
„The railway has many challenges ahead of it, such as modernising the infrastructure or increasing the capacity of terminals so as to increase its competitiveness as a means of transport. At CTL Logistics, we do everything to make our offer attractive to customers who focus on quality and safety, but also consider more broadly, the future for ourselves and our planet. 100% of green energy powering CTL Logistics trains as early as 2025 is not theory but practice and a very real implementation of the national climate and energy policy by our Company,” comments Grzegorz Bogacki, president of CTL Logistics
The contract with CTL Logistics is the second contract signed in the area of the industry’s Green Railway® programme, following the Łódź Metropolitan Railway, which PKP Energetyka coordinates within the sector organisation of the Railway Energy Efficiency Centre.