PKP Intercity sales down 4.3 percent

PKP Intercity's new Pendolino train. Image: PKP

Between January and the end of May, PKP Intercity had revenues amounting to 725.9 million zloty (around 180 million euro) and 34.6 million zloty net profits. Preliminary figures put the rail operator’s net profits at over 50 million zloty in the first half of 2014.

However, Pawel Hordynski, PKP Intercity’s CFO, told the Rzeczpospolita daily that the operator may end the year with a net loss close to figures seen in 2013, when the company filed a net loss of 16.6 million zloty.

Pendolino problems

Meanwhile, PKP Intercity is still waiting for 20 new Pendolino trainsets manufactured by France’s Alstom.

The trains have not yet been put into service as Alstom filed the relevant paperwork with the Office of Rail Transport regulator at the beginning of July.

The delay comes as Alstom manufactured the trains to run at 160 km/h and not 250 km/h as stipulated in the original tender between PKP and the French company.

The move sparked outrage in Poland, with Deputy PM and Economy Minister Janusz Piechocinski calling for the deal to be renegotiated if Alstom didn’t deliver what it had originally proposed.

“Alstom now wants to prove that they are not responsible for the delay so that it does not have to pay penalties for not fulfilling the contract on time,” Hordynski said.

Extreme braking tests were carried out with the Pendolino trains last week on Poland’s Central Rail Line which runs from Warsaw to the Silesian urban conglomeration.

However, according to the daily the tests should have been carried out “months ago”.

“This just goes to show that problems with the trains’ homologation lie purely with Alstom and these issues could have been resolved earlier,” Hordynski said, adding that if the Pendolino trains are to start operating in Poland, they have to be delivered by autumn, which is still possible, Rzeczpospolita reports. (jb)