To finance new trains, Deutsche Bahn is using a ten-year leasing model for the first time - for just under one billion euros. However, Deutsche Bahn still has to maintain the trains itself.
Berlin. Deutsche Bahn is using a leasing model for the first time to finance new ICE trains. The companies involved announced on Tuesday that 25 high-speed ICE3neo trains from the manufacturer Siemens Mobility are involved. The leasing contracts will each have a term of ten years, with maintenance remaining with Deutsche Bahn. The total financing volume amounts to just under one billion euros.
Deutsche Bahn has around 400 ICE trains. Siemens Mobility has ordered 90 ICE3neo trains, 39 of which are to be delivered by the end of the year. They can be used not only in Germany, but also for international connections to Brussels or Amsterdam. In future, they will also run in France and Poland.
With the financing model via a consortium led by BayernLB, Deutsche Bahn intends to modernize its ICE fleet. According to sources close to the state-owned company, the deal brings advantages, particularly in terms of debt and liquidity. Leasing is an additional building block that makes it easier to react to changes in the market.
Leasing models are much more common among shipping companies and airlines than at Deutsche Bahn. "The leasing model strengthens our financial capacity to act without relinquishing operational responsibility," said Wilken Bormann, CFO of DB Fernverkehr.
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