KfW IPEX-Bank
This article first appeared in the Railway-News magazine Issue 3 2021.
Designing Regional Mobility: A Model for the Public Transport of Tomorrow
By Dr Carsten Wiebers, Global Head of Aviation, Mobility & Transport – KfW IPEX-Bank
Increased Commitment to the Rail Sector
KfW IPEX-Bank has been steadily expanding its financing in the rail sector over several years. There are many reasons for this. However, a major driver is the bank’s desire to make a significant contribution to the mobility transition and climate change mitigation. Around 20% of global CO2 emissions originate from the transport sector. A significant proportion of these emissions is accounted for by individual passenger transport and freight transport by road. Helping to shift these shipments to rail is therefore a key objective for KfW IPEX-Bank. Furthermore, the current crisis has shown the stability of freight transport by rail, which accordingly poses a comparatively low risk for the bank.
High Demand for Rail Financing – Trend to Leasing
Banks’ increasing interest in the rail sector also coincides with higher demand for financing. Railway companies are continuing to replace rail vehicles they own with leased locomotives and rail cars from leasing companies. The leasing rate in the European rail sector is still comparatively low – at 30% of the total fleet, compared to a leasing rate of 50% for aircraft or container ships. Due to the high efficiency gains through leasing, we predict that this trend will also continue in the rail sector…
