Electric locomotives: More power and technology drive modernisation in Europe - Global production capacities limit the flourishing market

The global new vehicle market (OEM) for electric locomotives has reached an all-time high of almost EUR 6 billion and will continue to grow dynamically at a global rate of 5.4% over the next five years, SCI Verkehr forecasts in the study "Electric Locomotives - Global Market Trends 2024". According to the current study for the seven regions of the world, there are two key drivers: The expansion of the degree of electrification of the rail network, particularly in Asia, and the adaptation to technical and performance-related requirements such as cross-border functionality, ETCS and last-mile equipment. Higher speed and performance are leading to rising purchase prices for electric locomotives. This is reflected not only in the rising market volume for new locomotives, but also in the high-capacity utilisation and increasing competition between manufacturers, whose capacities are currently the limiting factor in the market. Siemens in particular has been producing at the limits of its capacity for years, despite several capacity expansions for the European market. In Europe, an already high replacement demand based on an outdated fleet, together with the demands on performance and technology, is leading to a real boost and is causing the market for modern electric locomotives to grow despite the costly and slow progress of network electrification.