Countdown to Homogenization on the Railways

21.11.2023 – 07.41

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport has started a countdown for the “homogenization” of the Greek Railways, which today presents an image of pieces of a puzzle that are scattered.

The goal of YPOME is a holistic approach to the medium and the way not only of operation but also of overall existence. Events such as the accident in Tempe and the floods due to Daniel seem to have accelerated the developments.

What is now certain is that we are going to an organizational restructuring of the main companies that make up the railway in the country, namely OSE, ERGOSE and GAIAOSE. According to senior officials of the Ministry of Economy and Finance on ypodomes.com, the announcements will be made this year and it is estimated that the legislative initiatives as well as the overall implementation of the new structure of the railway companies will be achieved in a period of 1.5-2 years, with a deadline of of 2025.

This, as any changes will be part of the government’s initiatives for rail powers that exist within the Recovery Fund so the timeline takes us until then. As the same sources note, the proposed changes seem to satisfy the institutions that had, after all, put the issue of the railway in Greece on the table.

The ministry in this way wants to solve the Gordian link of multi-splitting that exists today, as we have another company that manages the network and that does projects for the network (OSE), another for the new projects (ERGOSE) and another for the property property (GAIAOSE).

At the moment, the homogenization strategy is not known, i.e. if there will be a new corporate entity such as e.g. it is done at group level with the creation of a holding company under which the member companies “hang” or if there will be some other substantial change that will now bring the three railway companies very close.

One interlocutor, new organizational chart

What will be achieved with the “homogenization” of the Greek Railways, is that the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport will now have an interlocutor from the companies it is responsible for, thus more clearly delineating the policy and strategy for the medium, the modes of operation-development, the need for projects and the management of the network and its property.

Based on this, as mentioned by the sources in ypodomes, there will be a new organizational chart with clear responsibilities and responsibilities to untangle the current status quo. This change, as we mentioned above, will require legislative initiatives that are expected to be taken in 2024 and completed in 2025.

Of great importance is of course the large project program run by ERGOSE and OSE now with flagship projects such as the upgrade of the Athens station, the electric trains in Northern Peloponnese and Thessaly, the new double line to Rio.

Also the new projects for the Western Suburban of Athens, the rehabilitation projects, the project program with the competitive dialogue, the upgrade of the SKA-Oinoi section, etc.

During all this time it is crucial that any changes do not affect the timetables and the speed of absorption of funds as all these projects are or will be carried out with money from European programs such as NSRF 2021-2027 and CEF II.

2025 the milestone year?

The juncture will even bring when the homogenization is completed with the estimated completion of the rehabilitation works on the railway, the tender for which is in the preparation phase.

As it has become known, at this time the tender documents are being prepared so that the tender of approximately 185 million euros will go live in early 2024.

The goal there is to complete the restoration works in full form at the end of 2025. The works should bear the stamp of durability, so that they have much greater resistance to extreme weather phenomena.

The goal is, of course, from 2026, to have a new page for the railway, the medium that has not achieved what the highways have achieved, that is to expand and establish itself in the consciousness of passengers and businesses as a competitive, safe and modern means in its entire range.