CD Cargo, a Czech state-owned railway freight company, could merge with its Slovak competitor ŽelezniÄnĆ” spoloÄnost Cargo Slovakia (ZSDC). Both companies face financial problems and the Czech and Slovak prime ministers, Petr NeÄas and Robert Fico, hope that a merger would make them more competitive on the European market.
āSmall railway freight companies are unable to survive. We can see it in Slovakia. We have serious economic problems with this company,” Fico told ÄTK, adding that he was prepared to back such a project. NeÄas is convinced that restructuring both railway freight companies should precede the merger. CD Cargo is on the verge of insolvency and restructuring could save it. “A strong player would thus emerge in Central Europe, it would be one of the four to five strongest railway freight companies in the whole Europe. We really are under pressure from Russian as well as German transport companies,” NeÄas said.
