DB Cargo Faces 'Last Chance' as Osburg Details Full Overhaul

DB Cargo is entering one of the most critical phases in its history, as a comprehensive restructuring plan aims to restore profitability and competitiveness. CEO Bernhard Osburg describes the transformation as a "last chance" to stabilise rail freight operations in Germany and across Europe.

German rail freight operator DB Cargo is entering a major restructuring phase. An external assessment has confirmed the restructuring plan approved in March by the European Commission, as well as by the management and supervisory boards of parent company Deutsche Bahn AG. The company can now begin a process from which it aims to emerge stronger, with a clear perspective of economic stability and a stronger position not only in Germany but also across the European market.

The restructuring is based on four strategic priorities: a consistent focus on European rail freight, modernisation of single wagonload transport through new operational structures, a large-scale cost reduction and productivity programme, and a cultural shift within the company towards greater entrepreneurial responsibility. The new direction also includes further development of operational processes through digitalisation and the use of artificial intelligence, with the aim of improving management quality and streamlining control and administrative processes.

Since the end of October 2025, DB Cargo has been led by new CEO Bernhard Osburg, former head of the steel group Thyssenkrupp. He replaced Sigrid Nikutta at a time when she was criticised by rail experts, politicians, and trade unions for an inadequate restructuring concept.

Osburg stayed out of the public spotlight while developing his plan, which he has now presented and had approved. Due to the conditions for granting public support, the European Commission also commented on it. Osburg summarised his plans in detail for the first time in an interview with the German media network Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland, which we present in full.

Mr Osburg, is it still possible to achieve a turnaround at DB Cargo?

"I believe we have a good plan for a new start. And the experts who assessed it see it the same way. But a good plan must become reality. That is a completely different game, which will begin in 2026, but will last much longer than just one year. For 2026, I am optimistic that, according to our management plan, we will reach our goal of ending the loss-making period and achieving break-even."

Can you give a specific figure for the level of debt?

"In 2024, DB Cargo’s liabilities were still around €2 billion. The annual report for 2025 will be published at the end of March. At first glance, the amount appears high, but DB Cargo also has solid assets, such as a large number of wagons and locomotives. The problem at the moment is rather that turnover is decent, but little remains for development. If we follow the restructuring plan, we will achieve profitability typical for the market. It may not be particularly high in freight transport, but it will allow us to cover our investments and financing costs. And then something may remain to repay debts and invest. I truly believe it can succeed: when I look at DB Cargo as a puzzle, no piece is missing."

What are your most important tools to bring DB Cargo back into profit?

“The first and decisive lever is DB Cargo itself. It is a company with a European presence and 18 national subsidiaries, but it still does not operate truly as a European entity. That must change by 2030. The core of DB Cargo’s business lies in Germany as the industrial engine of Europe. We are under strong competitive pressure. What is no longer produced in Germany but relocated elsewhere in Europe is still needed and must be transported – for a European rail freight company like DB Cargo, this represents a major opportunity with significant growth potential.”

What are the other tools?

"The second tool is single wagonload transport, which is not a simple segment. I know this area well from the customer side, from my time at Thyssenkrupp. We will maintain single wagonload transport to the greatest possible extent, because it is systemically critical for Germany and its economy. But we will reorganise it."

"In the future, there will be four main production hubs: Cologne-Gremberg, Seelze, Mannheim, and Nuremberg. Within this rectangle, we will operate at very high frequency. In addition, there will be five connected freight yards serving, for example, seaports or major industrial clusters. Instead of more than 30 train formation nodes, we will focus on around 20. There will also be additional terminals where freight trains will be handled."

Does this mean fewer workshops?

"Yes, we are changing the maintenance concept and will reduce the number of our workshops by twelve – and we want, where possible, not to close them but to sell them. There will certainly be interested buyers. However, due to ongoing negotiations, we cannot provide further details."

Will this lead to large-scale job cuts?

"Yes, that is part of the third major pillar of the cost and productivity programme. It includes measures worth €1 billion by 2030. A significant part of this is also the reduction of jobs by 2030. This concerns around 4,000 positions within the programme of measures and approximately 2,000 in single wagonload transport. A completely key role here is played by achieving higher productivity – not a fictitious benchmark, but the level of productivity that DB Cargo had five to seven years ago. This applies to all areas. And then there is a fourth lever.”

What is the fourth lever?

"It is culture. This issue affects all companies that have been loss-making for a long time: it impacts people. Fundamental questions arise that everyone must answer individually and take responsibility for within the company. We have entrepreneurial spirit in our team, but we need to develop it further. We still have a long way to go – away from ‘competence’ and towards ‘responsibility’."

Do you feel that this is having a response?

"Yes, I do. The warning signal has been fully received. Now there is a great deal of activity underway, very positive activity."

Will you also adopt the ideas of your predecessor Sigrid Nikutta? She also advocated greater economic autonomy for individual divisions.

“Yes, I support this division into separate divisions, although we will carefully reconsider some aspects. We do not want to isolate individual activities into completely separate divisions, as this could lead to a loss of synergy. For our key functions, we need responsibility for results. And that also attracts a certain type of people: proactive individuals who appreciate entrepreneurial freedom.”

Have you already met with employees?

"Yes, because I want to get to know them: train drivers, shunters, and infrastructure workers. If we do not involve them, we will not increase productivity. Ultimately, I must restore pride in the railway profession. And that can only happen if employees know who makes the relevant decisions for them and trust them. I can relate to that situation, because I was not born as a chairman of the board. I come from a very modest district in Duisburg; my father was an electrician.”

Nevertheless, cutting 6,000 jobs will be a very difficult task…

"Yes, but we are not a start-up; we have a high proportion of older employees. In this respect, demographic development works in our favour. In addition, there is normal staff turnover of several hundred employees per year, as well-trained rail freight staff are in high demand on the market. And we have a large internal labour market within the group. Across the entire DB Group, there are 220,000 jobs. We are trying to balance interests in the most socially acceptable way possible – including retraining or financing relocation. However, it will not be possible without flexibility on the part of employees."

The trade unions will probably see it much more critically…

"I believe that all stakeholders have truly understood: what is happening now is something like a ‘last chance’. And there are two perspectives. On the one hand, we are dealing with around 6,000 jobs that will be cut. On the other hand, we want to preserve 19,000 jobs in a healthy European company.”

So what does the future of DB Cargo look like?

"There are definitely growth opportunities on the market, for example, in combined transport, both continental and maritime. Because what is no longer produced in Germany does not all come from Europe either. For example, ammonia is cracked in countries with high raw material reserves and then imported here. Many goods arrive by ship and must then be transported further. But even overall growth in rail freight transport alone would not save DB Cargo."

What role do digitalisation and automation play in your strategy – for example the Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC)?

“I consider this technological step to be very interesting. At the moment, however, it appears to be too big a step. We have to rebuild freight wagons, they must be supplied with electricity, each wagon must have a battery. And these are only some of the tasks ahead of us. A new system standard is being created for approximately 500,000 freight wagons in Europe. Nevertheless, it is right to continue working on DAC.”

Can AI play a role in restarting DB Cargo?

"We are already using artificial intelligence to accelerate processes, and there will and must be much, much more of it. The railway system is complicated, but it is not complex. For example, requests come into the sales department from all over the world, in all languages, sometimes handwritten, with spelling mistakes or sometimes without them. Artificial intelligence captures them and transfers them practically in real time into systems. With AI, you can also carry out completely different analyses across the entire system and thereby improve management quality. Overall, I expect great potential, because many things – planning, dispatching and so on – are still done very manually and with many people."

That is also a question of available capital.

“Yes, but you do not have to invent everything yourself. The technologies essentially already exist.”

Does rail freight in Germany need permanent state subsidies, or can DB Cargo survive in the long term without support?

“There are several key questions that can only be answered politically, and support certainly belongs among them. Let us take, for example, the very costly single wagonload transport: on the one hand, this segment is essential for maintaining the functioning of the economy in a large country like Germany. But we also need support whose level will be reliable. There are several European countries that have taken a different path of abolishing single wagonload transport. But do we want that as well? Once again: for industry, single wagon transport is essential. If we want to maintain it in this form, long-term political support is required. On this matter, I would like a clear and firm answer.”

How do you perceive competition from road transport?

"Here too, a political answer is needed. So far, a permanent support component is required in order to compensate appropriately for the structural deficit compared to road transport. In the current system, we are not achieving the required utilisation.”

And how do you envision this?

"If freight vehicles, especially with regard to their external costs for our environment, were taxed fairly, the situation would look different. With regard to CO₂ taxation and tolls, we definitely still see potential for the outcome to be fairer for rail.”

You personally are under enormous pressure. What drives you forward?

“I am used to stressful situations. Above all, I care about what happens to people. My goal is to create a DB Cargo company that can offer a secure future for 19,000 people. That is where I draw my strength. In the first months as CEO, I noticed that my message is reaching people. People are starting to become active – and that also gives me strength. My recipe is also to spend weekends with my family, cook, do a bit of sport, cycle. That is also very valuable. God has given me good resilience. I am grateful for that. But I also know that in management you do not automatically gain any superpowers.”