Mitsui Rail Capital
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Mitsui Rail Capital (MRC) is a rolling stock leasing company. It was established by the Japanese conglomerate
Mitsui & Co is a Japanese general trading company (Sogo shosha, ''sogo shosha'') and a core member of the Mitsui, Mitsui Group. For much of the post-war period, Mitsui & Co. has been among the largest of the five great ''sogo shosha'' (Mitsui, Mitsubishi Co ...
, the company's main activities have been the purchase, renting, and leasing of railway freight cars and locomotives. MRC has been active in various parts of the globe; local subsidiaries such as ''Mitsui Rail Capital Latin America'' and ''Mitsui Rail Capital Europe BV'' (MRCE) were established to operate in the
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
n and
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
an markets respectively. Rolling stock has typically been acquired directly from their manufacturers, however, other means of expanding the company's operations have been pursued on occasion, such as the acquisition of Siemens Dispolok in 2006. By 2022, MRC operated a fleet of 332 electric locomotives. During 2023, Mitsui & Co were bought out of MRC's ownership and the company was rebranded as ''Modern Rail Capital'' to reflect this change. Later that same year, MRCE were sold to, and promptly integrated with, the British rolling stock leasor Beacon Rail. As a result, the company has undergone considerable restructuring during this time.


Corporate affairs and ownership

In 2015, MRC was reorganised as a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
between Mitsue & Co and JA Mitsui Leasing Ltd. (JAML). During February 2021, it was announced that terms had been agreed with JAML to take full ownership of MRC, making it a wholly-owned subsidiary of JAML; the new parent company stated that this move would help it expand its presence in the
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
n market. In July of that year, MRC's North American operations were rebranded as ''Modern Rail Capital''. In August 2023, MRC's European operations, branded as MRCE, begun to be transferred to the British rolling stock leasor Beacon Rail; three months later, operations of the two companies had been fully integrated ahead of schedule.


Regional activities


Latin America

''Mitsui Rail Capital Latin America'' (Mitsui Rail Capital Participacões Ltda.) (MRCLA) was established in
São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...
,
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, in November 2004. MRCLA's main area of activity has been the rental of freight cars, particularly for
iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...
and
agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...
products. The company also has the intention of acquiring logistical hubs, in particular ports and related trans-shipment centres. Its main customers are the Brazilian freight railway companies América Latina Logística (ALL), MRS Logística, and EFVM and EFC, both subsidiaries of Vale S.A. (the ex-Companhia Vale do Rio Doce Group
Vale A vale is a type of valley. Vale may also refer to: Places Georgia * Vale, Georgia, a town in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region Norway * Våle, a historic municipality Portugal * Vale (Santa Maria da Feira), a former civil parish in the municip ...
).


Europe

''Mitsui Rail Capital Europe BV'' (MRCE) was launched in October 2004 with the headquarters in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
as a joint subsidiary of Mitsui & Co., Ltd.(Japan) and Mitsui & Co. Europe plc. (United Kingdom). MRCE's main activity was the leasing of locomotives in Europe for the now liberalised rail transport system - particularly to new private railway companies. During September 2006, the company expanded its market presence via the acquisition of Siemens Dispolok, based in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, Germany. The two companies' operations were subsequently merged; accordingly, ''dispolok'' being renamed ''MRCE dispolok'' in 2008. Throughout the 2010s and 2020s, MRCE opted to play an active role in the design and deployment of
European Train Control System The European Train Control System (ETCS) is a train protection system designed to replace the many incompatible systems used by European railways, and railways outside of Europe. ETCS is the signalling and control component of the European ...
-compatible apparatus for their locomotive fleet; this activity has involved considerable time and capital outlay, but unlocks greater potential use for the fleet. During 2016, MRCE opened a new office in
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
, Italy. Three years later, the company, in partnership with
Siemens Mobility Siemens Mobility GmbH is a division of Siemens. With its global headquarters in Munich, Siemens Mobility has four core business units: Mobility Management, dedicated to rail technology and intelligent traffic systems, Railway Electrification, ...
, established a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
locomotive workshop in
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...
. By 2023, MRCE leased its locomotives across 18 European countries, including
Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
and parts of the
Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
. Locomotives leased from the company typically carry a distinctive black gloss livery.


United States

''Mitsui Rail Capital, LLC'' (MRC) was established in June 1996 in the U.S. state of
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
and has business offices in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
(Illinois) and
Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...
(
Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
). During 1997, ''Unitrain MRC'', a specialist in coal transportation, was acquired by the company. A major sector of the firm's operations was the leasing of freight cars, particularly coal wagons. Furthermore, MRC was also involved in the management and maintenance of freight wagon fleets it operates including logistics services.


Rolling stock

In 2023, the company's inventory consisted of around 340 locomotives supplied by various manufacturers, including
Bombardier Transportation Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, with headquarters in Toronto and Berlin. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. ...
,
Siemens Mobility Siemens Mobility GmbH is a division of Siemens. With its global headquarters in Munich, Siemens Mobility has four core business units: Mobility Management, dedicated to rail technology and intelligent traffic systems, Railway Electrification, ...
and Vossloh Locomotives. Many of these locomotives are fitted with multiple signalling systems, including the
European Train Control System The European Train Control System (ETCS) is a train protection system designed to replace the many incompatible systems used by European railways, and railways outside of Europe. ETCS is the signalling and control component of the European ...
, as well as traction apparatus compatible with different power supply systems, so that the company's fleet can be operated across various different countries. MRCE has developed close working relationships with various rolling stock manufacturers; in the case of Siemens Mobility, they have cooperated in performing fleet data analytics to improve service and maintenance efficiencies. By the end of 2017, across multiple orders, MRCE had arranged to acquire in excess of one hundred Siemens Vectron locomotives. By 2022, MRC's locomotive inventory included 322 electric locomotives, comprising 29
Bombardier Traxx Alstom Traxx (sold as Bombardier TRAXX before 2021) is a modular product platform of mainline diesel-electric and electric locomotives. It was produced originally by Bombardier Transportation and later Alstom, and was built in both freight and ...
(BR 145, F140 AC, F140 AC2, F140 MS), 176 Siemens
EuroSprinter The EuroSprinter family of electric locomotives is a modular concept of locomotives for the European market built by Siemens Mobility. The internal Siemens product name is ES 64, with ES for EuroSprinter and the number 64 indicating the 6,400  ...
(ES 64 F4, ES 64 U2), and 127 Siemens Vectron locomotives. It also has various diesel locomotives, including
Vossloh G1000 BB The Vossloh G1000 BB is a class of off-centre cab diesel-hydraulic B'B' 4 axle locomotives built by Vossloh in Kiel since 2002. When operating under Swiss ownership the locomotives have received the class ''Am 842'', several units owned by the '' ...
, G1206, G1700,
G2000 G2000 (Generation 2000; ) Group was founded by Michael Tien in 1980 in Hong Kong. The label G2000, first introduced in 1985, was positioned as a specialty clothing chain distributing fashionable gent's and women's career wear. Today, the G200 ...
, and
EMD JT42CWR The Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD) Class 66 (EMD JT42CWR) are Co-Co locomotives, Co-Co diesel locomotives built by EMD for the European heavy freight market. Designed for use in Great Britain as the British Rail Class 66, a development of the Briti ...
(also known as "Class 66") locomotives.


References

{{reflist


External links


MRCE dispolok company website

Official MRCE website
Rolling stock leasing companies Mitsui & Co.