DB Cargo UK and DB Cargo Polska refurbish wagons for Tata Steel’s green transition

Credit: DB Cargo UK

DB Cargo UK and its sister company DB Cargo Polska are working together to refurbish 60 BAA wagons for Tata Steel, supporting the company’s £1.25 billion transition to greener electric arc furnace technology. These refurbished wagons, designed to carry steel slabs and coils, will play a key role in Tata Steel’s shift from traditional iron and steel production to a more sustainable process.

Details on Tata Steel’s green transition

DB Cargo Polska is manufacturing new 40ft wagon frames at its advanced engineering facility in Rybnik, Poland. These frames are then shipped to the UK, where DB Cargo UK’s maintenance facility in Stoke finalises the fitting, assembly, and testing. The first of these wagons entered service in February 2025.

Roger Neary, DB Cargo UK’s Chief Sales Officer, highlighted the importance of this collaboration: “This innovative project underlines the positive benefits of being part of DB’s large international network of companies… Tata Steel is one of the UK business’s biggest customers, going through a major change to improve its long-term sustainability and environmental performance.” He added that the new wagons are critical to ensuring Tata Steel’s smooth transition to green steel production.

Tata Steel’s transformation includes a £1.25 billion investment in electric arc furnace technology and upgrades to its Port Talbot site in Wales. The company is shifting from traditional iron and steelmaking to importing steel slabs and coils for processing. The refurbished BAA wagons will transport these materials from local ports to Port Talbot, with the option to be converted for future feedstock transport when the new electric arc furnace starts production.

Kerys Twinberrow, Deployment Operations Manager at Tata Steel UK, stated: “This current transition phase… is critical in maintaining service to our customers and maintaining confidence in supply. This collaborative wagon refurbishment programme is exactly the sort of joined-up thinking that will ensure both companies’ success.”