Beacon Rail buys Colas Rail fleet

[Casper]

Hello

As per Railway Gazette

https://www.railwaygazette.com/news...e-view/view/beacon-rail-buys-colas-fleet.html

EUROPE: Beacon Rail Leasing has acquired 67 diesel locomotives from Colas Rail, which will continue to operate them in the UK and France.

‘Acquiring this portfolio of diesel locomotives is in line with our strategy, growth ambitions and our continued commitment to being the leader in this segment of the market’, said Beacon Rail CEO Ted Gaffney when the deal was announced on December 20. ‘It adds to our existing fleet of heavy diesel locomotives, so this acquisition allows us to continue to leverage our existing skills, expertise and experience. We are also very pleased to add Colas Rail as a customer and we are looking forward to strengthening and growing our relationship with Colas Rail in the future.’

The 67 locos is the entire Colas fleet so what does this mean for their continued UK operations?

Are they selling them and then leasing them back from Beacon Rail?

Colas get a cash injection and then the locos are no longer their liability for repairs?

Long term I don't imagine Beacon would lose out on the deal so equivalently Colas will pay more than they sold them for. Albeit with less assets on their books to maintain etc

Thoughts welcome!!

 

[gazthomas]

It's a way of releasing finance for other purposes, let's hope expansion!

 

[pdeaves]

It would likely to be a buy-and-lease-back arrangement. Beacon Rail would be unlikely to purchase 67 locomotives for which they have no customer, so I don't think there's any concern for Colas' future.
I think Beacon has done a similar deal with someone else, too, but am not certain.

 

[swt_passenger]

It would likely to be a buy-and-lease-back arrangement. Beacon Rail would be unlikely to purchase 67 locomotives for which they have no customer, so I don't think there's any concern for Colas' future.
I think Beacon has done a similar deal with someone else, too, but am not certain.

Rail reported on a sale and leaseback deal between Beacon Rail and GBRF, in August. The latter firm having bought the locos from Colas:

Ten GB Railfreight Class 60s are to be leased from Beacon Rail.
GBRf bought the Type 5s from Colas Railfreight earlier this summer (RAIL858), and has agreed a sale and long-term leaseback of the ‘60s’ with the rolling stock leasing company.
https://www.railmagazine.com/news/fleet/gb-railfreight-to-lease-ten-class-60s-from-beacon-rail

 

[Suraggu]

Expect Colas Rail to drop quite a large amount of Railfreight but keep infrastructure work in the new financial year.

 

[43096]

From what has been said elsewhere this involves locos in both the UK and France.

UK is reported to be 5 x Class 56, 5 x Class 66, 2 x Class 67 and 7 x Class 70.
The other 48 are, apparently, based in France.

 

[DarloRich]

Hello

As per Railway Gazette

https://www.railwaygazette.com/news...e-view/view/beacon-rail-buys-colas-fleet.html

The 67 locos is the entire Colas fleet so what does this mean for their continued UK operations?

Are they selling them and then leasing them back from Beacon Rail?

Colas get a cash injection and then the locos are no longer their liability for repairs?

Long term I don't imagine Beacon would lose out on the deal so equivalently Colas will pay more than they sold them for. Albeit with less assets on their books to maintain etc

Thoughts welcome!!

Does this include their otm fleet?

 

[DarloRich]

Expect Colas Rail to drop quite a large amount of Railfreight but keep infrastructure work in the new financial year.

Why????? What rail freight contracts do they hold?

 

[Casper]

Rail reported on a sale and leaseback deal between Beacon Rail and GBRF, in August. The latter firm having bought the locos from Colas:

Here's a link to the article in Rail

"https://www.railmagazine.com/news/fleet/gb-railfreight-to-lease-ten-class-60s-from-beacon-rail

GB Railfreight to lease ten Class 60s from Beacon Rail

17/08/2018

Rail Magazine"

 

[Casper]

Expect Colas Rail to drop quite a large amount of Railfreight but keep infrastructure work in the new financial year.

If they are dropping railfreight operations then makes me wonder what they (if leasing back) or Beacon will do with their locomotives

 

[Casper]

From what has been said elsewhere this involves locos in both the UK and France.

UK is reported to be 5 x Class 56, 5 x Class 66, 2 x Class 67 and 7 x Class 70.
The other 48 are, apparently, based in France.

Hi

I have the following list for the Colas fleet (from Colin Marsden's Rail Guide 2017)

11 x Class 37/0
1 x Class 37/9
3 x Class 47/7
10 x Class 56
10 x Class 60 (now sold to GBRF and then onto Beacon Rail as a sale and leaseback)
5 x Class 66/8
17 x Class 70/8

Making 57

Colas' "Our Fleet" section of their website lists their locomotives as:

1 x Class 08
11 x Class 37/0 (RA5 route availability)
3 x Class 47/8 (electric train supply fitted)
10 x Class 56 (upgraded with tractive effort and wheel slip mods)
10 x Class 60 (Super 60 refurbished)
5 x Class 66
2 x Class 67
17 x Class 70

Making 59

Anyone have an up to date fleet list for Colas then and what the 67 sold therefore are?

As 43906 said above the only ones in the UK are:

5 x Class 56
5 x Class 66
2 x Class 67
7 x Class 70

The rest of the fleet being located in France?

I saw Colas 37175 at Loram Derby last week though.

 

[CosherB]

No such thing as a 70/8 - they are all 70/0, despite the numbering.

 

[Bertie the bus]

Expect Colas Rail to drop quite a large amount of Railfreight but keep infrastructure work in the new financial year.

Mutterings of Colas exiting the railfreight market have been around since they entered it. It's like the rumour a couple of years ago DB Schenker were pulling out of UK railfreight. The rumour turned out to be correct as DB Schenker became DB Cargo so there were no Schenker freight services.

 

[DarloRich]

Asking again : does this deal include the colas otm fleet?

I know these are boring tampers but still important

Mutterings of Colas exiting the railfreight market have been around since they entered it. It's like the rumour a couple of years ago DB Schenker were pulling out of UK railfreight. The rumour turned out to be correct as DB Schenker became DB Cargo so there were no Schenker freight services.

It didn't turn out to be correct. It was a rebranding nothing more.

 

[43096]

Asking again : does this deal include the colas otm fleet?

Which bit of “diesel locomotives” stated by Beacon’s CEO in the first post in this thread was confusing you?

 

[DarloRich]

Which bit of “diesel locomotives” stated by Beacon’s CEO in the first post in this thread was confusing you?

Which bit of colas entire fleet in the OP statement confuses you? Apologies for seeking clarity.

That clearly is not all of thier fleet yet posters keep saying all of their fleet.

 

[14xxDave]

Which bit of colas entire fleet in the OP statement confuses you? Apologies for seeking clarity.

That clearly is not all of thier fleet yet posters keep saying all of their fleet.

Hi Guys, semantics is one of those thorny subjects. I think the OP was referring to the loco fleet in its entirety and not the entire fleet of assets that they have.

Take care and have a good Yuletide folks.

D.

 

[DarloRich]

Hi Guys, semantics is one of those thorny subjects. I think the OP was referring to the loco fleet in its entirety and not the entire fleet of assets that they have.

Take care and have a good Yuletide folks.

D.

Quite right. Forget it. Not important

 

[43096]

Which bit of colas entire fleet in the OP statement confuses you? Apologies for seeking clarity.

Apologies for providing clarity. And for the record the OP wrote “The 67 locos is the entire Colas fleet”. Although it isn’t the entire loco fleet, there has been no mention of track machines anywhere.

Oh and none of it confuses me. You’re the one who didn’t read the detail.

 

[swt_passenger]

Here's a link to the article in Rail

"https://www.railmagazine.com/news/fleet/gb-railfreight-to-lease-ten-class-60s-from-beacon-rail

GB Railfreight to lease ten Class 60s from Beacon Rail

17/08/2018

Rail Magazine"

That link is the same as in my earlier post? Perhaps the quote box wasn't expanded when you read it...