Press commentary by SCI Verkehr GmbH on the sale of Vossloh Locomotive division to CRRC
The Chinese market entry in Europe by purchasing their own production facility is not a surprise, but rather overdue.
[27.08.2019] Commenting on the sale of Vossloh's locomotive division to the Chinese CRRC subsidiary Zhuzhou (CRRC ZELC), Maria Leenen, CEO of SCI Verkehr GmbH, said: "The Chinese market entry in Europe by purchasing their own production facility is not a surprise, but - measured by the expectations of the Europeans and the Chinese's announcements - rather overdue." CRRC, the worlds largest rolling stock manufacturer, has been targeting the most lucrative and competitive market region in Europe for a long time. Now the market entry has been achieved via the traditional locomotive plant in Kiel, which covers 25% of the European diesel locomotive market. We congratulate CRRC and its ambitious subsidiary Zhuzhou on this strategically important success. At the same time, we see great challenges ahead for the buyer of the plant, because in the past no owner has succeeded in sustainably posting a profit. One reason for this is the Kiel-based company's product range: diesel locomotives for marshalling yards and regional sections are niche products. At the same time, the pressure to find alternatives to diesel is growing on the railways and for shunting locomotives, while competition is strong. The plant has to reinvent itself in order to find and expand its place in the future landscape of rail vehicle manufacturers. To achieve this, the economically and technologically strong parent company CRRC will have to play an important.
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