Industry in transit

DB Schenker, a freight logistics subsidiary of Germany’s state-owned national railway company Deutsche Bahn, has acquired Polish rail cargo operator PCC Logistics. The latter firm was formerly owned by pan-European conglomerate PCC SE. None of the parties disclosed the value of the transaction, but industry insiders believe it was worth zł.1 billion.

"This part of Europe has better growth prospects than other regions. More companies are relocating their production here," said Norbert Bensel, head of DB Schenker, at a press conference. The company is the largest logistics operator in Europe, with a turnover reaching €18 (zł.84.4) billion. It employs nearly 90,000 people and 60 percent of its employment is located outside Germany.

Polish PCC is one of the largest competitors of state-owned PKP Cargo, which still holds the largest share in the market. The third-largest freight-logistics operator in Poland is CTL Logistics, 75 percent of which was acquired last year by Bridgeport, a British private equity fund.

"We were aware that Deutsche Bahn will enter the Polish market sooner or later. We used to have one state-owned competitor, now we will have two," Krzysztof Sędzikowski, head of CTL Logistics, told Rzeczpospolita.

Last year, PKP Cargo reported operational losses of over zł.200 million. PKP Cargo is laying off over 700 people in the Podkarpackie region and 200 people in Podlaskie region.

According to various sources, 5,000-7,000 employees are expected to lose jobs in the coming months.

Marcin Poznań