Rock Rail, together with Infracapital and MEAG, has announced an investment in 16 three-car and 19 four-car Siemens Mireo electric multiple units (EMUs). The trains will be leased to Deutsche Bahn that was recently awarded a new operational contract for the Elektronetz Nord-Magdeburg (ENORM) network, which serves the Magdeburg and Halle regions.
The order expands Rock Rail’s existing involvement with the Siemens Mireo platform, following previous acquisitions of 41 three-car and 18 four-car units for the S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland (MDSB) programme.
The new ENORM fleet has been designed to provide operational flexibility and accommodate varying platform heights. The trains incorporate a range of accessibility and safety features, including compliance with current Persons with Reduced Mobility (PRM) standards, step-free boarding, PRM-compliant lavatories, non-slip flooring, and acoustic and visual passenger information systems. Additional safety measures include contrasting visual elements and LED lighting in boarding areas.
MEAG is providing debt financing on behalf of Munich Re Group and other institutional lenders. This transaction is the fourth investment made through the Marble regional rail platform, jointly owned by Infracapital. It follows the procurement of fleets for MDSB Lots 1 and 2 and the delivery of the Mittelthüringer Akku-Netz (MAN) fleet earlier this year.
Since 2022, Rock Rail has completed six rolling stock investments in Germany:
- Talent 3 EMUs for general purposes;
- Altom Coradia Stream HC for DB Regio’s Main-Weser Express;
- Siemens Mireo EMUs for S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland (MDSB) Lot 1 and 2;
- Siemens Mireo battery trains for NWL;
- Stadler FLIRT Akku battery trains for Mittelthüringer Akku-Netz (MAN)
- Siemens Mireo EMU for Elektronetz Nord-Magdeburg (ENORM) network
About the ENORM contract
The ENORM network links Magdeburg and Saxony-Anhalt with neighbouring regions in Lower Saxony and Brandenburg. Earlier this year, DB Regio was awarded the new transport services contract for 15 years (December 2028 to December 2043) on the following lines:
- S1 Schönebeck-Bad Salzelmen – Magdeburg – Burg
- S2 Magdeburg – Zielitz
- RE 20 Magdeburg – Stendal – Salzwedel – Uelzen
- RB 30 Halle (Saale) – Köthen – Magdeburg – Stendal – Wittenberge
- RB 40 Braunschweig – Helmstedt – Magdeburg
An optional operational stage involves extending the RB 40 line beyond Magdeburg Central Station (Hbf) to Dessau Hbf while discontinuing services on the S2 line within the current contract. The contracting authorities can decide to implement this optional operational stage with 18 months’ notice, with the earliest implementation possible at the timetable change in December 2030 and the latest at the timetable change in December 2036.
Current and future rolling stock
The current rolling stock is Class 425 EMUs for the S-Bahn connections and loco-hauled Twindexx double-deck trains on the other lines. In 2024, DB Regio also published a tender for 50 new EMUs (plus options) anticipating a possible win. The contracting authorities flexibly designed the ENORM transport tender so bidders could offer (multiple) solutions with new and/or used vehicles. But, if the operator submitted a single bid solely with used vehicles and this was awarded, no contract would be awarded in this procurement procedure.
