| Founded | 1998 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Paris, France |
| Website | www.groupe-vfli.com www.vfli.fr |
VFLI (Voies Ferrées Locales et Industrielles) is a train operating company based in France. It is a subsidiary of SNCF. The company was formed in 1998 as a low cost short line and industrial railway operator.
The subsidiary Fertis operated construction trains on the LGV Est up to 2007.
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VFLI was created in 1998 as a subsidiary of the holding company SNCF participations to operate as a low cost operation,[1] initially the company took over the operations of two industrial railway systems: Voies Ferrées des Landes (VFL) and Mines Dominiales de Potasse d'Alsace.[2][3]
In 2000 the company began a joint venture with Compagnie des chemins de fer départementaux (CFD) called Voies Ferrées du Morvan to operate the 87km Avallon-Autun railway line,[1] and in 2001 took over operations on the Houllières du Bassin de Lorraine (HBL) via a subsidiary 'VFLI Cargo.[1]
Up to 2007 the company was involved in the construction of LGV Est through the subsidiary Fertis.[3][note 1] In 2007 the company gained cerification to operated on the main French rail network.[5] By 2008 the company was providing services for around forty industrial sites, with clients having included Rhodia, Arkema, Arcelor,[note 2] Renault and Coke de Carling,[3] Ciments français, Lafarge, Elf, Port Edouard Herriot (Lyon), ALZ, Smurfit SCF in Facture and PSA (in Trnava, Slovakia),[6] other contracts included transport of combustion waste from Protires waste processing plant in Strasbourg, work sub-contracted from SNCF and transportation from ports.[3]
In 2010 VFLI owned ~100 diesel locomotives, mostly shunting and short trip locomotives.[1][7] as well as ~800 wagons.[1]
The company also operates rolling stock workshops, carrying out maintenance and refurbishment.[1]