This year, Polish railways PKP SA plans to sell real estate of a total value of PLN 200m (around EUR 50m).

At the end of 2011, Russian Railways (RZD) plans to announce an international tender to build a high-speed railway line linking Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Five trade unions signed a wage agreement for 2011 with the Hungarian Railways MAV. VDSZSZ union did not sign it, but announced, that will not sabotage the agreement.

RegioJet, the rail passenger subsidiary of Student Agency, will from March 2012 operate on the line between Bratislava and Komarno. It will be the first private company running on this route.

There are already first benefits of the competition introduced to the Czech rail passenger market. Czech Railways decided to significantly improve standard of its Eurocity and Intercity trains.

- The company’s result for the year 2010 is similar to the one registered in the first half of the year. It means, that in the second half the company started earning – Grzegorz Medza, the president of PKP Intercity, told Rzeczpospolita daily.

The Hamburg wagon hire and rail logistics company VTG Aktiengesellschaft delivered the first batch of its newly developed compressed gas tank wagon to its customer Evonik.

Two new heads of the freight operator Rail Cargo Austria (RCA) have been appointed by the management of the Austrian Federal Railways (OBB).

- The process of PKP Cargo’s privatization can be completed this year – Andrzej Massel, Polish vice minister of infrastructure in charge of railways, told Polish Press Agency. On the other hand, before the privatization of PKP Intercity takes place the company’s reputation must be strengthen.

Due to the huge number of forms of discounts offered by the state-owned Hungarian Railways MAV, only one for every six passengers is paying a full price for a ticket.

- Following the results of existing analyses I suppose, that consolidation of ZSSK Cargo will come within next one or two years – Pavol Durinik, the president of the Slovak rail freight operator ZSSK Cargo, told Railway Market – CEE Review.

Russian Railways (RZD) and United Metallurgical Company (OMK) has extended for 5 years (until the end of 2015) the long-term contract for supply of railway wheels.

The state-owned Ukrainian Railways (Ukrzaliznytsia) published 2010 rail freight transportation results.

Deutsche Bahn (DB) is currently testing Touch & Travel application for selling tickets via iPhone mobiles.

Polish Minister of Infrastructure, Cezary Grabarczyk, assured once again, that further dismissals will take place due to the recent rail chaos in Poland.

On 25 January, the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) held its first exchange of views on the European Commission proposal to recast the first railway package.

The contract on the execution of works on the construction of new Zezelj bridge over the Danube river, has been signed on 25 January in Novi Sad.

On 21 January, Lithuanian Ministry of Transport and Communication published a strategic plan, which says that national railways will earn around LTL 80m (EUR 23.17m) in 2011.

Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a teleconference between Vilnius and Odessa. Discussed were issues related to the transport corridor between Baltic and Black Sea, and also container train “Viking”.

The German branch of the Swiss rolling-stock manufacturer Stadler Rail will develop its plant in Berlin.