Agro company Pissier loaded the first freight train from its private rail siding in Ormes, near Orléans in central France.
The siding is an ITE, the French term for a private branch terminal installation connected to the national rail network. Such sites allow industrial, agricultural or logistics companies to load wagons directly at their own premises instead of trucking goods to a public rail terminal.
The project was supported under the Centre-Val de Loire State-Region planning contract, which includes funding for the regeneration, creation and expansion of private rail sidings. SNCF Réseau, the French national rail infrastructure manager, worked with Pissier on the technical and regulatory requirements, the works programme, restoration of the siding and access to train paths. The siding is served by Millet Rail.
The restarted Ormes siding is intended to support cereal logistics in Centre-Val de Loire, one of France’s main grain-producing regions. Rail already plays a large role in the regional grain sector: cereals account for 65% of rail freight traffic in Centre-Val de Loire, and 45% of cereals harvested in the region are transported by train.
The service also gives local farmers another outlet for moving grain to processing customers. According to SNCF Réseau, one grain train from the Ormes siding replaces several dozen truck movements.
