Press releases

The large Austrian transportation company, LKW Walter, has received the Climate Comet of the Year Award for 2010. LKW Walter’s trucks can be seen in many of Europe’s countries and more and more of its trailers are traveling the long distances by train.

Mariann Östansjö has joined the Green Cargo Group as CFO. She has broad experience from companies that are active in an open market.
“It feels very good to already be able to introduce our new CFO,” says Green Cargo’s new CEO, Mikael Stöhr, who now has an important puzzle piece in place.

Mikael Stöhr has now taken over as CEO of the Green Cargo Group. He has an industrial background which is complemented with international experience from the Swedish Trade Council. He will lead the Group with its core business of rail transports, a service which is in great demand.
“Since the recession began, Green Cargo has successfully managed to cut costs. It is now time to start growing again, and we will do so with improved profitability. It is very inspiring to take over the helm for Green Cargo on the very same day we have started operations between Sweden and two industrial centers in Germany,” says Mikael Stöhr.

Just as volume increases and streamlining synergies would have resulted in profitability, a winter characterised by the Swedish Transport Administration's failure to keep shunting yards open had a major impact on Green Cargo's earnings. Rail freight customers have in many cases been faced with an unreasonable situation and we now share joint responsibility with the Swedish Transport Administration to strengthen faith in rail as a desirable mode of transportation both from an environmental and a quality perspective.

Green Cargo has started its own intermodal shuttles in Europe, which gives freight carriers and hauliers new opportunities to save time, money and the environment. The new shuttles with trailers and containers run six nights a week on the routes Hannover – Malmö and Krefeld – Malmö.

Today, seven leading European rail freight operators officially created the Xrail alliance. Xrail’s goal is to render international wagonload traffic by rail more customer-friendly and efficient. The alliance aims to increase the competitiveness of wagonload traffic in Europe significantly, thus helping take traffic off the roads and protect the environment.

The recession hit Green Cargo very hard in 2009. Volumes in railway transport fell by 24 percent, with the Group reporting a loss after financial items of 21.5 million EUR. The powerful action programs that were implemented produced the desired effects in the second half of the year. Along with an increase in demand, this led to a considerable improvement in results, with a profit and good cash flow in the final six months of the year. These action programs will continue and will reduce Green Cargo’s costs by more than 58 million EUR by 2012.