Monday 27 April 2020

‘First country-to-country waste transportation without using trucks is a success’

‘First country-to-country waste transportation without using trucks is a success’

Resource management company Geminor has completed the first international transport of refuse-derived fuel (RDF) by train, without the support of trucks.

A two-carriage train loaded with 110 tonnes of RDF arrived at Geminor’s HUB in Landskrona in Sweden, sent from another of the company's facilities in Braunsbedra, Germany.

The firm claims the move is the first-ever waste transport on rails unsupported by trucks from one European country to another, with a railway track directly linking both sites - the transport was mainly conducted by electric locomotives, making the journey highly sustainable.

The firm notes a train of eight carriages can load as much as 500 tonnes, the equivalent of 16 trucks, slashing the emissions per ton of cargo 'radically'.

Kjetil Vikingstad, CEO of Geminor Norway, said: "Currently we have a capacity of transporting up to 50,000 tonnes by rail per year. This opens for more transport of baled waste, non-baled waste or materials for recycling from many markets in central Europe, such as Poland and Italy in addition to Germany.

"Rail carriages also allow for the return transport of products such as paper and timber, making this an economically as well as environmentally sound transport alternative."

Written by

Bruna Pinhoni

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