The Italian state-owned railway holding Ferrovie dello Stato (FS) recorded a net loss of 208 million euros in 2024, compared to a net profit of 100 million euros the previous year. On the other hand, the rail freight department had a positive year both financially and performance-wise.
In terms of performance, rail freight within the FS Group reached 22,9 billion tonnes-kilometre, 8.6 per cent more than in 2023. There was also an 11,7 per cent rise in trains-kilometre, but the absolute figures were not specified. On the financial side, operating revenues grew by 18 per cent, from 1,15 to 1,36 billion euros, while the EBITDA of the segment went from 60 to 61 million euros (+1,7 per cent). It needs to be mentioned that the rail freight segment of the FS Group had a quite negative first half of 2024, meaning that there was a significant bounce back in the second half.
The group also increased its technical investments, mostly concerning the renewal of its rolling stock fleet, from 181 million euros in 2023 to 297 in 2024. The main contributor to the rail freight growth of the FS group was its international operator, TX Logistik. At the end of 2023, the company acquired Exploris, a company based in Germany running 240 trains per week. The “equity and financial effects (of the acquisition, ndr) were fully reflected in the situation of the FS Group starting from 2024”, FS pointed out.
Highest investments ever
When it comes to the FS Group in general, the net results showed a decrease of 308 million euros, from +100 million in 2023 to -208 in 2024. The main causes behind the negative performance in this case remain somewhat ethereal. The group stated that it was “due to the worsening of the financial management balance attributable to non-recurring phenomena linked to changes in the consolidation scope and to higher financial charges to service the debt”, FS stated.
The group’s EBITDA remained quite stable, from 2,23 billion euros in 2023 to 2,24 in 2024. Technical investments totalled over 17,5 billion euros, the highest ever result according to the company. The main ones mentioned by the group are for the Terzo Valico in Genoa, the Naples-Bari line and a few connections in the north.
The rest of the FS Group
When it comes to the segments of the FS Group, road and rail infrastructure posted negative EBITDA trends. The former had an EBITDA of 86 million euros compared to the 460 of 2023, while the latter went from 135 to 119 million euros. Just like the freight segment, passenger transportation posted positive numbers, with a 20.1 per cent growth in EBITDA to 1,86 billion euros. The Urban sector also posted significant growth, despite relatively small absolute values, with its EBITDA going from 33 to 158 million euros.