DB Cargo AG and DB Bahnbau Group Adding 50 Dual Powered Locomotives to Fleets

(Credit: Siemens Mobility)

DB Cargo AG and DB Bahnbau Group have ordered 50 dual powered electric and diesel locomotives to increase sustainability in freight transport and improve the efficiency of transport based on the infrastructure demands of the railway.

The Vectron Dual Mode locomotives can be operated by diesel or electricity and will be produced by Siemens Mobility. The locomotives will be delivered with specific adaptations for the range of services for each operation. With the order, the DB Cargo fleet will increase to 146 Vectron Dual Mode locomotives, and the DB Bahnbau Group will add its first four.

Because the locomotives can be used in areas that include all-electrified sections of their transport routes as well as areas where there is no electricity setup, there is no need to change engines as the rail systems change, thus improving efficiency. This is especially important in Germany where despite most of the railways being electrified, the so-called last mile of the supply transport operation can usually only be done using internal combustion locomotives.

“This will reduce CO2 emissions, lower maintenance costs and help DP implement more sustainable supply chains,” says Albrecht Neumann, CEO Rolling Stock at Siemens Mobility.

Trains produce smaller amounts of emissions than road transport, and the European Union has identified trains as an important piece of meeting sustainability goals and intends to increase freight transported by rail by 50% by 2030 and double it by 2050.

While electric railways are common in Europe, some 75% of its infrastructure still depends on fossil fuel-powered trains, according to the World Economic Forum. Still, the WEF says, the infrastructure exists on the continent where no major changes need to be made in order to transition to other forms of locomotive power.

Other methods for improving sustainability in train transport are also being developed. In 2021, Siemens Mobility began testing a liquid organic hydrogen carrier technology in an effort to advance hydrogen-powered trains.

Areas without those rail systems are also adding options other than diesel-powered locomotives.

Within the last few weeks, several mining operations in Australia have ordered battery-powered locomotives. BHP Western Australia Iron Ore and Rio Tinto each ordered four of the battery locomotives to reduce the emissions produced during the transportation of their goods.

Siemens Mobility’s Vectron Dual Mode locomotive is designed to operate on a 15-kV AC voltage system and is equipped with the PZB train control system. Delivery of the locomotives will begin in 2026 and will be produced at the Siemens Mobility plant in Munich-Allach, Germany. Siemens Mobility has sold 195 Vectron Dual Mode locomotives to 18 customers.