Bernhard Osburg, CEO of DB Cargo, said he wants to rapidly bring the heavily debt‑laden freight rail division back into the black. He is confident that, by the end of 2026, the company can reach the “black zero” target set out in its management plan, he told the German media outlet RND.
Osburg plans to do this through a cost and productivity programme, with a savings target of €1 billion by 2030. A key element is the reduction of roughly 6,000 jobs-about 4,000 as part of the programme and an additional 2,000 in individual wagon traffic. He emphasised that the goal is not a fictitious benchmark but the level of productivity DB Cargo enjoyed five to seven years ago, a standard that would apply across the organisation.
The board also aims to strengthen DB Cargo’s position across Europe. “The core of DB Cargo, the German business that powers Europe’s industry, is heavily burdened” Osburg said. “But what is no longer produced in Germany and is instead made elsewhere in Europe is still in demand and must be transported. There is a significant growth potential here”.
Osburg wants to preserve as much of the expensive individual wagon traffic as possible, because it is system‑critical for German operations. A restructuring will see the creation of four main production hubs-Cologne‑Gremberg, Seelze, Mannheim and Nuremberg. In addition, the company will focus on around five secondary freight rail terminals that serve ports or large industrial clusters. Overall, DB Cargo intends to consolidate its more than 30 locomotive‑assembly sites to about 20, and to add further facilities for freight‑train handling.
The number of workshops will be cut to 12. Osburg said that, whenever feasible, the company will not shut these down but look to sell them, noting that there are interested parties.