DB Cargo Prepares Rail Network for Large-Scale CO₂ Transportation
- 4 days ago
- 1 min read
DB Cargo is positioning rail freight as a central part of Europe’s emerging carbon management infrastructure, offering industrial companies a scalable solution for transporting captured carbon dioxide to utilisation or permanent storage facilities.
Industries such as cement and lime production generate emissions that cannot be completely eliminated through cleaner energy alone. Once captured at the production site, the CO₂ must be transported to hubs, ports, pipelines or storage locations, creating demand for reliable multimodal logistics chains.
For rail transportation, captured CO₂ is liquefied at approximately –30°C and loaded into specially insulated tank wagons under a pressure of 12–15 bar. Each wagon can carry around 60 tonnes of CO₂.
DB Cargo estimates that approximately five million tonnes of captured CO₂ could be transported annually in Germany by the beginning of the 2030s. The company says it could establish capacity for around four million tonnes per year within three years of the first German carbon capture and storage projects receiving their final investment decisions.
Rail will also connect industrial facilities located outside the future core pipeline network. DB Cargo is developing links to storage and export routes in the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway, combining rail services with ports, ships and pipelines.
The company is calling for clear approval and liability regulations, coordinated infrastructure development and reliable investment conditions to support the growth of the European CO₂ logistics market.
Image source: dbcargo.com
