Rail freight company Lineas enters closed court reorganisation to restructure debts
Rail freight operator Lineas has filed for a closed court reorganisation procedure in an effort to restructure its debts under judicial supervision. The move, reported by De Tijd and L'Echo on Tuesday, is intended to give the company breathing space to negotiate an agreement with its creditors.
Lineas plays a key role in the ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge and is by far the largest user of the roughly 1,000 kilometres of rail infrastructure on the port sites. The Belgian rail freight operator employs more than 1,500 people and emerged from the former SNCB freight subsidiary B-Cargo.
However, Lineas has been loss-making for several years and has remained operational through a series of shareholder and other loans. Its main creditors include banks as well as the Flemish and Walloon governments. In the short term, the company faces the repayment or refinancing of loans totalling 46.25 million euros.
To safeguard its continuity, Lineas has opted for a closed court reorganisation procedure, a mechanism introduced into Belgium's Code of Economic Law in 2023. This allows companies facing financial difficulties to negotiate confidentially with creditors under court supervision, with the aim of reaching an amicable or collective restructuring agreement.
Signs of recovery
Despite an operating loss of 20.8 million euros, Lineas is forecasting a "significant improvement" in its financial results in 2026. According to the group, financial equilibrium should be reached the year after. Lineas added that it has recently secured several commercial successes and said that "the first signs of recovery are already visible".
The company also pointed to changes in the competitive landscape, noting that Europe has decided to no longer allow public companies competing with Lineas to "receive illegal state aid or operate at a loss". That shift has already helped Lineas regain market share in France, the company says, and it hopes to achieve a similar recovery in Germany.
#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO JONAS ROOSENS
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