Operail earned a profit

Added on 12.05.2020

Railway operator Operail saw an improvement of its main financial indicators and earned a net profit of 9.6 million euros in 2019.

The Operail group, increased its sales revenue to 75.4 million euros last year. EBITDA grew by 8%, amounting to 17 million euros. “2019 was iconic for us from several aspects – we entered a new market and established a subsidiary for servicing cargo transport in Finland, expanded the list of services rendered, took some significant steps with regard to providing more economical transport solutions, and managed to demonstrate very good financial results,” said Raul Toomsalu, Chairman of Management Board of Operail. Operail group includes in addition to the parent company also subsidiaries in Estonia and Finland

Operail’s wagon rental business continued to grow, with revenues increasing by 40% from the previous year, to 12.9 million euros. By the end of the previous year, more than 2,200 of Operail’s 3,500 wagons were leased out.

The freight volume in 2019 remained on the same level as in the previous year and Operail transported 13.2 million tonnes of freight (2018: 13.4 million tonnes) of which transit made up 71%. Most of the freight transported by rail was fertilisers (6.1 million tonnes) and mineral fuels (3.5 million tonnes). “We forecast the 2020 transit freight volume to be lower than in 2019; however, we are seeing an increase in the Estonian domestic freight volume,” said Toomsalu. “The foundation laid in the last two years in the form of new services and markets allows us to be optimistic about the company’s future,” Toomsalu added.

Operail is an Estonian state-owned railway company, whose main business areas are freight transport, locomotive and wagon repair and construction, and rolling stock rental. The company employs more than 640 people. 

Photo: Romet Liivamägi