OREANDA-NEWS. July 27, 2011. Freight One is using boxcars to haul bagged cement. The company has reached a verbal agreement for this with the Eurocement Group companies Lipetskcement (Lipetsk region), Belgorodcement and Oskolcement (Belgorod region). Previously, Freight One hauled cement from these companies exclusively in specialized cement wagons in bulk.

It should be noted that boxcars are usually used for high-profit (3rd class) freight, while cement is considered to be in the low-profit category (1st class). Given the social importance of cement hauling and the high demand for rolling stock in the season, Freight One uses a diversified approach, using all types of wagons. Under the verbal agreements, Freight One hauled 16,500 metric tons of bagged cement in June. It was hauled primarily to federal construction sites in Sochi, housing projects in Moscow and Moscow region, as well as to the Lower Volga.

Freight One increased its cement haulage by 4.5% to 6.9 million metric tons in Russia in the first half of the year. The company has set favorable cement hauling rates for the construction sector. The rate that Russian buyers pay for boxcar cement haulage is on average 17% lower than the total cost of hauling it in state-owned wagons. This makes Freight One competitive with truckers, who are traditionally the main haulers of bagged cement.