DB and China to cooperate more closely in rail freight transport and infrastructure projects

The Chinese Ministry of Railways and Deutsche Bahn sign a memorandum of understanding in Beijing / DB International handles construction supervision for extending high-speed lines

Beijing/Berlin - Deutsche Bahn and the Chinese Ministry of Railways want to cooperate more closely in rail freight transport and in expanding the Chinese rail infrastructure. In a joint declaration, both parties confirmed their intent to strengthen rail freight transport and to step up the establishment of new transports between Asia and Europe through closer cooperation. Jan Mücke, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Transport, and Liu Zhijun, Minister of Railways of the People’s Republic of China, were on hand in Beijing on Tuesday as the memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed.

“We are ready for closer cooperation with China. German expertise and German technology will play an important role in stepping up cooperation. Rail is the backbone of our freight transport. We want to become even more efficient, particularly on long hauls, and that will also help on transports to and from China,” said Mücke after the MoU was signed in Beijing. Federal Minister of Transport Peter Ramsauer and his Chinese colleague Li Shenglin had already signed an MoU to cooperate more closely and exchange expertise, specifically in the logistics sector, during Ramsauer’s visit to China.

“China offers growth potential for our customers and for us. The more Chinese production sites that move from the coast inland, the more interesting rail transport to Europe becomes for many manufacturers. We want to meet this demand,” added Dr. Karl-Friedrich Rausch, Member of the Management Board of DB Mobility Logistics AG responsible for Transportation and Logistics. The aim is also to involve the Russian Railways, RZD, to beef up trans-Eurasian rail freight transports.

Rausch signed the MoU together with Niko Warbanoff, Head of International Business Development (non-EU) of Deutsche Bahn AG and one of the managing directors of DB International GmbH (DBI). “The memorandum of understanding is the basis for strengthening our business activities. China is a very important market for us – both for DB Schenker and for exporting our professional expertise,” said Warbanoff. The DB subsidiary is ready to offer its consulting, planning, construction supervision and project management support to China during the expansion and new construction of the high-speed network.

In 2010, DB International submitted the winning bid in five other construction supervision projects for nine high-speed routes in China. The total contract volume is around 30 million euros.