The European Council decided on 26 July to extend the existing economic sanctions on Russia by six months until 31 January 2023. This six-month extension could prolong even more if the situation does not stabilise...Read more
The recovery trend that Russian Railways follow after the initial shock by the EU and US sanctions keeps going strong. The state-owned company says that transported volumes to Far East ports reached record numbers in...Read more
SANCTIONSThe Russian Railways have proceeded with an official request to the European Union to lift sanctions concerning the company. RZD was among the first legal entities to enter EU sanction lists just days after the...Read more
UPDATEThe European Commission realised the scenario of reversing the decision to impose restrictions on rail freight transit to Kaliningrad via Lithuania. Brussels published a guidance document clarifying that no sanction regime applies to rail transport...Read more
Lithuanian customs intend to exempt certain types of fertilisers transiting from Russia to Kaliningrad. As a result, around 837,500 tons of potassium chloride and 1,58 million tons of mineral and chemical fertilisers could be transported...Read more
SanctionsSince April 2022, 865 Russian freight cars have been seized by Finnish authorities. Over 82 million euro worth of assets were frozen to comply with EU sanctions on Russian coal after the start of the...Read more
The Lithuanian customs have imposed a ban on the transit of Russian cement, alcohol and other products on their way to Kaliningrad by rail. The restrictions came into force on Sunday, 10 July, after a...Read more
The European Union could reconsider the implementation of sanctions on cargo transit to Kaliningrad. After the initial decision to ban the transit of some products through Lithuanian territory, followed by Moscow’s threat to retaliate, the...Read more
Russian Railways will partially suspend the transit of specific products through Belarus on the way to Poland. The company announced concisely a couple of days ago that “shipments of certain goods routed to Poland by...Read more
The Lithuanian government is again consulting with the EU Commission on implementing the fourth EU Sanctions package that includes a slow down of transit trains and goods on their way to Kaliningrad. This is after...Read more
UPDATEDLithuania banned the transit of sanctioned products on trains to and from Kaliningrad. The ban has been in effect since Saturday, 17 June. Western sanctions on Russia are behind this decision, which only affects sanctioned...Read more
Lithuanian Railways are forced to release around 2,000 employees in an attempt to cope with the increasing financial losses. The company has consulted with employee representatives and will proceed to their release in a controlled...Read more
The first wave of EU state aid for war-related losses is here. The European Commission approved a 20 billion euros state aid scheme to relieve German companies suffering due to the war in Ukraine and...Read more
150,000 wagons are currently stranded and remaining inactive on the Russian railway network. The situation is illustrative of the sanctions’ effect on Russia, which also creates a “hard operational environment for rail freight making it...Read more
The RailFreight Summit Special Edition hosted in Brussels last Wednesday, 6 April, provided much room for fruitful discussions and insights on the disrupted New Silk Road. The one-day event included some important news that we...Read more
The Lithuanian government will allocate 20 million euros to railway manager LTG Infra. Due to the sanctions against Russia, fewer goods are transported through Lithuania, resulting in lower income for rail infrastructure manager LTG.Read more
SANCTIONSThe EU is coming up with a new state aid mechanism to help those affected by the sanctions, said Kristian Schmidt, director of land transport in the EU Commission. European companies suffer losses due to...Read more
A fifth package of sanctions has been announced by the EU. Among others, the EU wants to ban Russian and Belarusian road transport operators, as well as Russian vessels and Russian-operated vessels from accessing EU...Read more
VR Transpoint, the logistics branch of VR Group, suspended rail freight traffic to and from Russia on Sunday, 27 March. VR Group is Finland’s government-owned railway company. The stoppage is in force since Sunday noon...Read more
The EU has extended sanctions on Russian banks. Since 2 March, it has excluded seven Russian banks from the SWIFT system. “This practically means that these banks will barely have access to international markets”, explains...Read more
Both the EU and the US have included Russian Railways in their sanction list. It is not completely clear what this means for rail freight transactions between Europe and China, but it seems that doing...Read more