As coal transport declines, rail freight operators face critical questions: how to compensate for lost volumes, adapt to heavy industry transformation, and strengthen its international routes. We discuss these challenges with Radim Ječný, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ČD Cargo, who outlines the company’s stabilisation efforts, strategies for replacing conventional cargo flows, and the critical role of industrial partnerships in future growth.
You assumed leadership of ČD Cargo in February 2026. What key objectives will you focus on during your initial year, and in what ways does your strategic vision diverge from previous management?
I believe my vision aligns with that of all previous leaders: to develop ČD Cargo into a thriving national rail operator that consistently serves as customers’ preferred choice. We aim to be a carrier capable of sustained investment in its own growth, ensuring successful operations for decades ahead. Regarding priorities, the company completed a challenging restructuring last year, requiring the reduction of surplus capacity, including, regrettably, workforce reductions. This year’s primary objective is to stabilise operations, reassure clients of our presence and commitment, and, after this difficult phase, reinvigorate our business expansion efforts.
Historically, ČD Cargo has built its operations on strong partnerships with heavy industry players such as Moravia Steel. How are these alliances progressing during this period of significant change in Czech energy and manufacturing?
We must understand that steel underpins our entire civilisation. Without it, railways could not function (as their Czech name indicates, železnice being derived from železo – iron), and we could not build structures, produce vehicles, or even maintain internet connectivity without steel. I am therefore certain that Europe will not completely eliminate its steel sector through regulatory and tax burdens, leaving us wholly dependent on Asian imports. With a touch of skepticism, I still believe that primary production will be maintained in at least some European steel plants. Yet this industry, like others, is transforming. We currently haul far more scrap for electric furnaces than we do traditional blast furnace feedstock such as coal, coke, and ore. We are heavily involved in importing semi-finished steel, billets and slabs, for processing at Ostrava’s Nová huť (New Metallurgical Plant).
Moravia Steel, or rather Třinecké železárny (Třinec Metallurgical Plant), is an essential partner, and we are proud to handle their logistics for everything from raw materials to finished products like rails. We are committed to bringing innovation to heavy industry through our modern fleet, and I am confident this sector will remain our partner in the coming years.
With the gradual decline of coal, ČD Cargo is losing its traditional volumes. What is your plan to replace the loss of revenue from the energy coal transport?
We have been watching coal decline for the past forty years – mining has steadily shrunk, and mining areas have closed one by one. If we managed to compensate for those losses before, we can do it again now. While coal is fading, container transport continues to grow. We will be moving more wood chips and other alternative fuels, such as municipal waste, directly to the energy and heating sectors. We have already made our first successful runs. Energy biomass transport is both a big challenge and a great opportunity for us. Because it has much less energy per ton, we will need to transport far larger volumes and run more trains to deliver the same amount of energy as we did with coal.
Expanding abroad is essential for ČD Cargo. What specific actions are you taking to strengthen rail connections to the Baltic ports – Gdańsk, Gdynia, and Świnoujście?
Our trains and crews have become a regular presence at Polish Baltic ports. But it is worth noting that these ports mainly serve heavy industry – bringing in raw materials such as iron ore, coal, pig iron, and timber, and shipping out steel products. Without heavy industry driving demand, the Baltic corridor becomes less strategically significant for us, as Czech container transport relies primarily on Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, and Koper.
As coal transport declines, rail freight operators face critical questions: how to compensate for lost volumes, adapt to heavy industry transformation, and strengthen its international routes. We discuss these challenges with Radim Ječný, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ČD Cargo, who outlines the company’s stabilisation efforts, strategies for replacing conventional cargo flows, and the critical role of industrial partnerships in future growth.
