Last week Rinalds Pļavnieks, Chairman of the Board at SJSC “Latvijas dzelzceļš” (LDz), participated in a debate organized by the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) in Brussels (Belgium), where the industry’s strategic development vision presented by CER to the EU policymakers was discussed.
CER is the leading European railway association, and LDz Chairman of the Board Rinalds Pļavnieks has been elected to the CER Management Committee, which is made up of representatives of major Western and Central European railways such as Austrian Federal Railways (OBB), German Railways (DB), French Railways (SNCF) and others.
The European Union is currently working on a number of directives and regulations on the transport industry, which will have a significant impact on the railway sector in Europe and also in Latvia. The CER debate was attended by the head of the Land Transport at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, a representative of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), and head of the Federation of European Private Port Companies and Terminals (Feport). At the invitation of CER, the panel discussion was also attended by Rinalds Pļavnieks, Chairman of the Board of SJSC “Latvijas dzelzceļš”.
The debate focused on Europe’s strategic objectives and changes needed to achieve them in the railway and transport sectors, including military mobility and freight transport, which will be essential to improving competitiveness of European industry while contributing to Europe’s green transition, as well as promoting Europe’s energy autonomy, especially in the current uncertain geopolitical circumstances.
Rinalds Pļavnieks, Chairman of the Board at SJSC “Latvijas dzelzceļš”: “Participation in CER and other European railway organizations is particularly important for LDz. We are pleased to be not only members of these organisations, but also active contributors and participants in taking and implementation of strategic decisions. Such debates and other events present an excellent platform to put issues relevant to the Latvian railway system high on the agenda.”
Photo: CER