1332i

INTERNATIONAL SUPPLEMENT TO BLN 1332 27 JULY 2019

BRANCH LINE NEWS

INTERNATIONAL

This newsletter covers the World outside the British Isles from information
supplied by members.

Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Compilers or of the Society.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS TEAM:-
International Editor (to whom all email and postal contributions should be sent):
Paul Griffin, 7 School Bell Mews, Church Lane, Stoneleigh, COVENTRY, CV8 3ZZ
Email: [email protected]
Deputy International Editor: Derek Woodward, 68 Church Street, Matlock, DERBY, DE4 3BY

_________________________________________________________

LaSalle Street station is a commuter rail terminal in downtown Chicago. It was a major intercity rail terminal for the
New York Central Railroad until 1968, and for the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad until 1978, but now serves
only Metra's Rock Island District. The present structure became the fifth station on the site when its predecessor was
demolished in 1981 and replaced by the present station. Despite an increased frequency of services in the current
timetable at weekends, the terminus was depressingly quiet at noon on a Sunday in June 2019.

[264] Austria – Draisine line east of Wien dismantled
The northern part of the freight line that used to connect Bruck an der Leitha with Petronell-Carnuntum
has been host to a draisine operation for the last eight years, but this has now ended and the tracks
have been dismantled.
[265] Austria – Confirmation of closure
It has been officially announced that the lines from Obersdorf to Groß Schweinbarth and Bad Pirawarth
to Gänserndorf via Groß Schweinbarth will definitely close. There is no freight, so closure is to all traffic.
[266] Denmark/Germany - Denmark to Germany by train ferry
For a journey from København to Bremen in early May, the itinerary offered by Deutsche Bahn’s website
for a bargain ticket was a bus journey all the way from København H to Rødby Færge for the ferry, as
the rail route is closed all summer for modernisation and electrification work.
Two full-sized road coaches were needed to carry all the passengers on the 11:10 departure; the journey
was at least quick (non-stop) and gave extensive views of the new high-speed line between København
and Ringsted, including the new interchange station at Køge Nord (at that time near completion but not
yet in use), the spectacular bridges between the islands of Sjælland (Zeeland) and Falster (with distant
views of the parallel railway line) and the tunnel between Falster and Lolland.
At Rødby the quality of the journey rapidly went downhill. The road coaches had made good time and
all passengers were dumped at the desolate railway station, a few hundred metres from the ferry, where
the facilities consisted of a single tiny shelter. It was raining. Signs (in English) promised future
improvements by 2021, financed by the EU.

Waiting room at Rødby Færge station

Eventually the EC train arrived from Nykøbing and moved off punctually, going down the ramp to deck
3 of the ferry ‘Schleswig-Holstein’, where the train fitted tightly in amongst the lorries.

Passengers had to leave the train during the 45 minute crossing, but this was no hardship as the facilities
were very good – it was even possible to have a full buffet-style lunch in the restaurant with a good view
out over the stern of the ship. The train had to climb a significant ramp to leave the ferry and reach the
German station of Puttgarden. Here police boarded and carried out a full passport inspection. There was
a delay of some 5 minutes for technical reasons; it felt as if the train software needed to be rebooted to
recognise the German signalling equipment. There was a regional train in the opposite platform at
Puttgarden but no sign of the train ferry being used for freight traffic; the extensive sidings on both sides
seemed disused.

Close-up of sign promising improvements

Train ready to leave Rødby Færge station and board the ferry
Train on board the ferry

Note ‘train’ icon on board the ferry (not sure what H&S would think of a steam train …)

[267] France – Épinal to St Dié to be renovated
On 1 July an accord was signed for the renovation of the line from Épinal to St Dié (closed in Dec 2018)
with a re-opening planned for 2022.

[268] France - Inauguration of TFBCO Tourist train
On 4 May, in rather poor weather, TFBCO (Tourisme Ferroviaire de la Brie Champenoise à l'Ormoie)
opened their tourist train for the first time at Montmirail, Marne, after a 20 year epic battle against
opposition from SNCF Réseau (formerly RFF), and other rail authorities. The association is based in the
former Compagnie de l'Est Batiment Voyageur that they were able to purchase. Opposite the BV is the
VFLI repair shop that employs 23 staff. An 8 km line from Montmirail to Artonges is managed by
VFLI. TFBCO acquired Picasso X 3926 to operate on Sundays. In this first season, there is a round trip on
Sunday mornings and another in the afternoon between Montmirail and Artonges. Passengers are not
allowed to get off and the Picasso just stops 2-3 minutes at the end of the VFLI section of the line. TFBCO
would like to extend its tourist trip from Artonges along the freight line to Mèzy which is on the Val de
Marne TER line. But since the project started no trains stop at Mèzy.
Courtesy of the French Railways Society

[269] France - Problems for CFTSA
The Chemin de Fer Touristique du Sud des Ardennes (CFTSA) has operated trains on the Amagne-Lucquy
– Attigny – Challerange branch since 1988, but currently face problems due to SNCF Réseau closing the
line beyond Alland'Huy, which is midway between Amagne and Attigny, on 1 October 2018. CFTSA, with

local support, are negotiating to operate this summer between Amagne and Attigny as well as access
the national network.

[270] Germany – S-Bahn line may be reopened over 40 years after closure
The long-disused S-Bahn branch to the Berlin suburb of Siemensstadt and Gartenfeld is set to be
reactivated following the signing of an agreement to fund the necessary planning studies. The 4.5 km
branch diverges from the S-Bahn ring at Jungfernheide and runs northwest towards the former industrial
area in the Spandau district. It was opened in 1929, but closed in 1980. The viaduct carrying the line over
the River Spree was subsequently demolished during a federally-funded upgrading of the waterway, and
a 150 m section of viaduct at Wernerweg also needs replacing. However, the stations at Wernerwerk
and Siemensstadt remain largely intact. The decision to reactivate the line follows an announcement by
Siemens last November that it planned to invest €600m redeveloping the 70 ha site as a new
manufacturing, research and residential district. ‘Siemensstadt 2.0’ is intended to house start-up
incubators and research institutes. It is hoped that S-Bahn trains could be running to Siemensstadt again
by 2025. The study will also look at the possibility of reactivating the northern section of the former
branch beyond Gartenfeld to Hakenfelde.

[271] Germany – Reopening of the line from Stolberg to Breinig underway
Works to reopen the line from Stolberg Altstadt (km 3.8) to Breinig (km 8.9) is progressing. In March
2019, the Rüstbach viaduct was demolished. The original viaduct was destroyed in WW2 and a makeshift
replacement constructed which will now be replaced with a modern structure. The bridge will be
completed in November so passenger services can start at the timetable change in December 2019.
There are demands for the remainder of the line to Eupen (in Belgium) to be reopened, but this would
entail extensive reconstruction of the 145m-long eight-arched Falkenbach -Viadukt and in the absence
of funding is not going to happen anytime soon.

[272] Germany - Two branch lines’ futures secured
A contract for the continued operation of RB78 (35 km Merseburg to Querfurt) and RB76 (31km
Weissenfels to Zeitz) to December 2024 was signed on 1 July 2019 by Sachsen-Anhalt transport authority
NASA and DB Regio Südost in the chapter house of Merseburg Cathedral. DB Regio currently operates
the services under the Burgenlandbahn brand using Deutschen Waggonbau Class 672 LVT/S railbuses.
The services are to be operated using refurbished LHB Class 641 single-car DMUs from the December
timetable change.

[273] Germany – Opel move to road at Eisenach
Opel Cars have been taken over by PSA, who have decided to move all car transport from the Eisenach
works to road from 30 June 2019. PSA would like to develop the land used by the railway infrastructure
for other purposes.

[274] Germany - Feldbahn Riedlhütte starts again
The Feldbahn Riedlhütte located in the Bayerischer Wald (Bavarian Forest) north of Grafenau started
running trains on a 1km section from 4 May 2019, one weekend a month, 10:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00.
Dates are available from http://www.feldbahn-riedlhuette.de/

[275] Germany - Feldbahn Wiesloch extends
Last winter saw the construction of a new depot hall as well as a 200m extension of the line into the
park at Leimbach to create a new terminus. The extension was opened on 19 May 2019. The railway is
about 10km south of Heidelberg.
[276] Italy – Sardegna narrow gauge problems
It looks as if there may be a limited service for some time to come on the narrow-gauge lines in Sardegna
operated by ARST SpA (trading as Azienda Regionale Sarda Trasporti, the Sardinian Regional Transport
Company) and probably none of the Trenino Verde lines. A recent law, Legge No 128 del 9 agosto 2017,
specifies that trains can only be operated by an "Aziende Ferroviarie", which translates as "railway
company". It appears that ARST SpA does not qualify as an Aziende Ferroviarie and local politicians are
seeking to have the law amended to overcome the problem. This seems unlikely to be a quick process!
Trains are running on some lines, possibly operated by a railway company acting on behalf of
ARST. There have been no trains on the line to Alghero since 7 April, but this is said to be because of
work on the line.
It was announced in February that there was to be a Trenino Verde service on only one line this year,
apparently Palàu to Tempio. Trains normally run from mid-June, but no timetable has been
published. Meantime, there are protests from hoteliers and others in the tourist business, because a
significant number of visitors come to Sardegna to ride on the trains, but not this year.
https://tinyurl.com/y6yvlgwu, https://tinyurl.com/y5xywv5v
[277] Latvia - Riga Central station to be rebuilt
Major developments are planned around Riga’s central station Rīgas Centrālā dzelzceļa stacija which will
see it converted into a multimodal transport hub with provision for 1435 mm gauge services.

The Rail Baltica website suggests the new station may look like this

The existing 1520 mm gauge line through the Latvian capital is to be reconstructed on an elevated
alignment, along with the construction of 2.6 route-km of 1435 mm gauge tracks. This will require six
new road bridges and a 1 km bridge over the River Daugava. The four island platforms will be replaced
by five platforms of greater height to facilitate level boarding of both broad and standard gauge trains.
A new 6000m² concourse and waiting area will be built above the platforms. Construction is expected
to begin in the second half of 2021. Construction of the elevated alignment will allow the removal of
sections of the current railway embankment near the central bus station and Elizabetes Street, opening
up ground-level connections between the old city and the suburb of Maskava.

[278] Lithuania – Engineering works around Kaunas
Since 22 May the tunnel between Kaunas and Palemonas has been closed for conversion to dual gauge
double track (more precisely four-track 1435/1520 mm). The Vilnius - Kaunas electric trains and the
Kaunas - Šiauliai diesel trains run only to/from Palemonas station. The works have actually been
underway since January 2019, and once complete the nine-kilometre section will have two kilometres
of four-track 1435/1520 mm gauge, of which 1.29 km will be in the tunnel, and 7 km will be separate
standard gauge north of two broad gauge lines. Traffic through the tunnel should resume on 1
September. On the Kaunas avoiding line (Jiesia – Palemonas) the new standard gauge tracks have so far
reached a point west of Rokai. Completion is expected in 2020.
The tunnel between Kaunas and Palemonas can be bypassed by a loop line south of the tunnel via Šančiai
This had been effectively severed, but was restored in September 2015 and should be used during (and
after) the works on the tunnel, but only for the supply of materials etc. It was never used as a "route",
only as a siding. It leads through an industrial area and there is even a section closed with a gate. It has
also been used recently for empty stock movements.

[279] Norway – Another big deviation on the Østfold Line going ahead
The 36 km section between Ski and Moss was double-tracked and realigned for 200 km/h operation in
the 1990s, but the upgrading finished at Sandbukta, 1.5 km north of Moss, as no agreement could be
reached over remodelling the line through the town. Further south, a 7 km section of double track was
opened in June 2000 from Såstad through Rygge. Work is currently nearing completion on the 22 km
Follo Line, which will provide an additional pair of 250 km/h tracks between Oslo and Ski from December
2021.
Now infrastructure manager Bane NOR has let contracts to build a 10.3 km section of double-track line
from Sandbukta to Såstad, replacing the existing sinuous single track alignment. The new route will
include two tunnels of 2700 m and 2300 m and a new Moss station with 800 metre long platforms.
Construction is expected to start in October 2019 for completion by December 2024.
The project is the fourth stage in the upgrading of the 136 km Østfold Line, which carries intercity
services southeast from Oslo and international trains to and from Göteborg.

[280] Poland - Słupsk to Ustka rebuilding and extension
An agreement between PKP PLK and the Pomeranian Voivodship was signed on 28 February 2017
mentioning two new stops, Słupsk Strefa and Ustka Osiedle. The latter is one stop beyond Ustka on the
former route to Sławno and closer to the Baltic coast. However recent reports mention Ustka Uroczysko

and looking at Google maps Uroczysko is beyond the existing Ustka station but not as far as Osiedle, but
near the beach.
The Ustka line is currently being rebuilt with EU funding and a recent visitor noted two new concrete
platforms at Ustka, new concrete platforms at three intermediate stations and a brand new station built
at Słupsk Polnocny. When the work is completed, probably December 2019, the branch will enjoy a year
round service.

Map courtesy of Europeanrailwayatlas.com

[281] Slovakia/Ukraine - Slovakian railways service into Ukraine starts
ZSSK started Košice-Mukachevo (other spellings are available!) trains twice-daily from 9 June 2019. Both
Hafas and the ZSSK Journey Planner are proving a little unreliable in the early days of the service but the
broad pattern until December is from Košice at 09:10 & 12:01, returning at (Ukrainian time) 14:54 and
18:20. The two train sets required to operate the timetable are two-car Class 813 - the ZSSK equivalent
of Pacers - and thus a lively ride is ensured on the non-stop Košice <> Čierna nad Tisou section, east of
which speeds are low – but all the better to observe the fascinating and busy passing scene. There is
intensive rail freight activity – broad and standard gauge - to be viewed all the way from Pribenik, west
of Čierna nad Tisou, for most of the way to Mukachevo.
There is a special border crossing platform east of Čierna nad Tisou, where the Slovak authorities check
the outgoing passengers. The train then moves slowly to Chop where the Ukrainian checks are more
thorough, with passports being taken away for checking (and stamping!). With fewer than 20 on board

on the first Saturday, 15 June 2019, there was plenty of time after the formalities were complete to
detrain and saunter along the platform. The train then moved at a sedate pace towards Mukachevo,
with frequent speed-restricted turnouts – it felt like a run along UK goods lines of old, paralleling
passenger tracks.
At Mukachevo, the two-road ‘Western Platform’ (standard gauge) station has but a single shelter, and
is at least 500 metres west of the western platform extremity at the elaborate main station. The train
crew – two ZSSK drivers, ZSSK guard and a Ukrainian railways conductor-driver who joined at Chop –
disappeared to the café adjoining the Western platform during the turnaround time. There is a direct
road with proper pavement from the Western Platform to the main station. Most passengers and locals
seem to wander freely across the tracks but there is a broad and high footbridge west of Mukachevo
station which makes a fine vantage point, overlooking the western end of the loco depot south of the
station. There are pay-the-attendant toilets at the west end of the station.
The return proceeded much as the outward, with crews of passing Ukrainian broad gauge freight
showing a great deal of enthusiasm by waving and sounding train horns. There were only a handful of
passengers aboard from Mukachevo, though a few more joined at Chop, where the Ukrainian authorities
again collected the passports and took them away. At the Cierna border, the Slovak border staff were
much more animated, and searched luggage for alcohol. Despite a malfunction of the electronic
passport scanners, departure was still earlier than scheduled, allowing plenty of time to wander at
Čierna nad Tisou station where the buffet was selling cold drinks. Single fares are available Cierna <>
Mukachevo, so would make a sensible add-on to an Inter-rail or other unlimited travel ticket.

[282] Spain – Updating the opening of Granada high speed line
Updating BLNI 1330.233, services on the new high speed line actually commenced on 26 June with 3
trains each way to Madrid and one Barcelona -> Granada -> Barcelona return trip in a day. The Granada
- Madrid Talgo via Linares-Baeza ended on the same day thus closing Moreda - Bif. Almeria to
passengers. No indication yet as to when Granada - Antequera Santa Ana broad gauge services will
resume.

[283] Spain – León station and LAV from Venta de Baños far from complete
LeoNoticias reports that the new León station, which was supposed to be finished by last December will
not finish construction until the late summer, which means it is impossible for it to open this year. So
trains to and from Asturias will have to take the roundabout route past León for probably another 9
months at least. Note also the final para below that the Variante de Vandellós has been waiting months
for final approval. The sluggish bureaucracy in the Railway Safety Agency seems to be responsible for
much of this.
A report in the Diario de Burgos from September, 2018 states that the LAV from Venta de Baños will not
open until 2020 because of testing and training. Even though this report is 9 months old, much of what
it says still applies. ADIF blames all the delay on the Frandovínez viaduct (where the contractor was made
to demolish the structure, which did not follow the specifications, and start again) although it has not
yet stabilized the Palenzuela embankment. In the middle of 2019 the work will end and testing will begin.
As at September 2018, testing had already lasted 10 months on the Granada line.

[284] Spain – Zaragoza to Sagunto upgrade required summer closure
The 315 km line between Zaragoza and Sagunt via Teruel is to be upgraded and this will require closure
of the line from 9 July to 5 October 2019. Once the upgrade works are completed, the line will be able
to take 740-metre length trains and the 30km/h speed limit in the area close to the Jiloca river will be
removed. Spanish infrastructure manager ADIF is planning to electrify the line in 2023.

[285] Spain – Observations from a visit in June
Variante de Camarillas – the old alignment has been disconnected at both ends of the cut-off but the
old track was still present as far as the eye could see.
Alacant trams – both tracks through the new Serra-Grossa tunnel are now in use.
Travelling from Alacant to València it was noted that the south to east SG cord at La Encina appears
complete to within 100m or so of the eastwards high speed alignment which is currently occupied by
the Iberian gauge tracks. Also, north-eastwards from Xàtiva wiring of the LAV tracks is almost complete.
The infrastructure between La Encina and Xàtiva however does not appear to have progressed at all
since last viewed in 2015, with the Iberian gauge tracks occupying the new high speed formation (since
around 1997!) and work on upgrading the old Iberian gauge formation stalled.
The earthworks for the standard gauge connection into the Ford factory at Silla do not appear to have
progressed at all since 2015 so this project appears to have stalled.
Confirming another member’s recent observations, there were no signs of SG tracks being installed
north from Castelló de la Plana. For the novelty value our member did catch an AVE from here back into
València. Only one platform at Castelló de la Plana is set up to accommodate these trains with a dual-
gauge track (platform 6), the SG rail of which just peters out at the north end of the platform.
The “service” from Xirivella-L'Alter still consists of a substitute taxi, however a visit to the station found
the track there quite shiny, which is something of a puzzle.

[286] Sweden - Heritage Tram in Göteborg (Gothenburg)
4 May was the second day of the operating season for heritage trams in Göteborg (most Saturdays from
27 April, daily from 6 July to 11 August). Operating under route number 12, the service is generally at
20-minute intervals between 10:30 and 18:30. It is advertised to operate between Central stations
(Centralstationen) and the amusement park at Liseberg, but that is not the whole story. Arriving at the
Liseberg tram stop, your correspondent was a bit baffled to see there was no obvious facility for turning
the tram round or stopping for any time without blocking route 5 trams. A heritage tram arrived from
the west (city) direction, stopped briefly to let passengers off, then continued eastward. It turned out
there was unusual track interest at both ends of the route. At the Centralstationen end, the heritage
tram stop is on the ‘inner loop’ around the square (Drottningtorget), which it uses as a turning circle (a
few very early morning trams are scheduled to use this line). During our members visit trams on line 6
terminated and started on the ‘outer loop’, but it looks as if this was a temporary routing because of
road works.
On their first try they were unlucky with the inner loop section as it was lunchtime and so they were
dropped off at the normal platforms along the south side of the square before the tram continued
eastwards for the crew’s break, presumably at the Tram Museum.
On a second attempt, they started from Centralstationen, leaving via the inner loop around the historic
Eggers Hotel. The friendly conductor kindly explained the route, saying that they were welcome to stay
onboard while the tram continued past Liseberg to the turning circle at the next stop (Sankt Sigfrids

Plan). Here there was time for a brief ‘photo stop’ before returning and turning left at Centralstationen
to complete the circular route. The trams in use were 133 (1920) and 302 (1923); driving these through
the city centre looked like quite a task, with the driver needing to ring the bell to warn pedestrians
stepping out in front and relying on a very manual braking system.
The single heritage tram fare is a very reasonable SEK 25 (= approx. £2) payable in cash only (unusual as
Sweden is very nearly cashless these days). All normal Göteborg public transport tickets are valid, except
‘pay as you go’ smartcards. The heritage trams are operated by a volunteer group.
Göteborg can boast the largest tram network in northern Europe; the city is built on marshy ground so
building underground is very difficult, although a new heavy rail line is under construction in the city
centre to allow through services at the Central station, currently a dead end. The normal Göteborg trams
have a notably old-fashioned feel, although they are wide (2.65m) and quite roomy – all are single-
ended. Trams run far into the suburbs, where they generally benefit from reserved track and sometimes
have a ‘tram-train’ feel, especially when running alongside the mainline route north of Central station.
In the west, at Saltholmen, tram line 11 makes convenient intermodal connections with the highly
efficient ferries running to the car-free southern archipelago. If you arrive on the ferry from Kiel,
Chapmans Torg stop on lines 3 and 9 is only a short walk away.

Tram 6 on ‘outer loop’ at Drottningtorget – ‘inner loop’ track in foreground, Central Station on left

Heritage tram on Sankt Sigfrids Plan turning circle
Interior of heritage tram 302

Heritage tram on inner loop track at Drottningtorget/Centralstationen
Heritage tram at Liseberg

Tram 8 southbound, just north of Frölunda

REST OF THE WORLD

[287] Argentina - Buenos Aires opens first viaduct built in the city for 100 years
The new elevated section of the 1676mm gauge Retiro Mitre to Tigre line was inaugurated on 10 May
2019. This is the first new railway viaduct in the city built for over 100 years and starts around 6km from
the Retiro Mitre terminus, comprising 3.9km of double-track railway with third rail electrification. It is
on concrete piers over ten metres above the former track bed with two new elevated stations replacing
former ground level stations. Belgrano Central station opened on 11 May but the Lisandro de la Torre
replacement station will open in October. Eight level crossings have been eliminated and road
connections re-established.
Similar projects are underway on sections of the San Martín Railway (LSM: Retiro to Pilar) and the
Belgrano Sur Railway (being diverted on viaduct to Plaza Constitución as previously reported in BLNI).

[288] Guinea – Rail projects for bauxite transport get funding
Guinea Alumina Corporation’s bauxite project, which includes the development of rail and port
infrastructure in Guinea has received loan funding. The project involves the development of the bauxite
mine, upgrading of existing rail infrastructure along the Sangarédi – Kamsar transport corridor,
construction of 27.7km of new track, and a new export port terminal at Kamsar.

[289] Kenya/Uganda - Metre gauge network to be upgraded
Little more than a year after the opening of the Chinese built standard gauge railway (SGR) between
Mombasa and Nairobi in Kenya, there are signs that East Africa’s love affair with China’s Belt & Road

Initiative may be waning. On 8 May 2019 Kenya’s Transport & Infrastructure Minister and his Ugandan
counterpart announced that further phases of the standard gauge route serving the two countries had
been put on hold in favour of upgrades to the existing metre gauge network.
Earlier reports had indicated buoyant passenger and freight traffic on the SGR, which is being operated
under contract by China Road & Bridge Corp. Container traffic had passed 2 million tonnes, and the
addition of bulk traffic would require an increase from eight to 12 freight trains per day. Construction is
nearing completion on Phase 2A, which will extend the route by 120 km from the capital to Naivasha in
the Rift Valley; this is reportedly on course to open in August. Kenya has already agreed loans from
China’s Export-Import Bank to fund the Mombasa – Nairobi line and Naivasha extension. It was expected
to negotiate a further package to take the SGR from Naivasha to Kisumu and the Ugandan border at
Malaba. The plan is to spend around US$150m fettling up the former East African Railways main line
from Naivasha to the border and a further US$60m on a 43 km connection to the isolated SGR
terminus.
Uganda has been in negotiation with the Chinese for construction of its own line from Kampala to the
border, for which land acquisition and clearance is already underway. However, actual construction has
been put on hold pending clarification about when the Kenyan standard gauge line will be completed.
As a stopgap Uganda is likely to spend around US$170m rehabilitating its metre gauge line from Kampala
to Malaba.

[290] Mongolia - Russia funds improvements in Mongolia
Russian Railways’ subsidiary RZD intends to increase the volume of containers running from China to
Europe via Mongolia. To this end, the Russian company will modernise the rail infrastructure in Mongolia
and supply new freight locomotives in a project lasting until 2030.
A new railway crossing is being planned on the Mongolian-Chinese border but no details were
announced. Russia is discussing with Mongolia the possibility of transporting Mongolian coal to the
seaports of the Russian Far East.