Italo announces €3 billion deal with Siemens to buy trains for Germany

Siemens AG

20/07/2026 11:55

    ROME, July 20 (Reuters) - Italian rail operator Italo Holding said on Monday it had signed a contract worth around €3 billion with Siemens Mobility SIEGn.DE to buy 26 high-speed trains, with an option for 14 more, to support its planned 2028 entry in the German market.
The company's total €3.6 billion ($4.12 billion) investment in Germany will see services begin on two main German corridors by mid-2028, introducing new competition to one of Europe's largest rail markets. 
The agreement with Siemens Mobility for the trains also includes a 30-year maintenance contract.
Operations are planned to launch in mid-2028, running 50 daily services connecting 18 cities on the Munich-Cologne-Dortmund and Munich-Berlin-Hamburg corridors.
Italo expects to create 2,500 around jobs in Germany, including in the supply chain, and to invest in train stations and IT infrastructure.
The trains will be manufactured at Siemens' Krefeld plant and maintained at its depot in Dortmund.

        Germany's network regulator last month presented a proposal to limit Deutsche Bahn's use of long-distance rail capacity on some congested routes, opening the way for rivals like Italo.

($1 = €0.8747)

 (Reporting by Antonella Cinelli, editing by Alvise Armellini)
 ((antonella.cinelli@thomsonreuters.com; +39 06 8030 7709;))