INTERNATIONAL: European Loc Pool has ordered 20 more Stadler EuroDual locomotives, lifting its fleet to 144 and specifying approvals for Germany, Austria, Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia.

ELP orders 20 more Stadler EuroDual locomotives, with the new batch covering Germany, Austria, Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia.
Photo: www.europeanlocpool.com

The firm contract was signed with Stadler Valencia in Frauenfeld on 10 August 2026. ELP’s official announcement says the additional locomotives will carry approvals for all five countries, extending the same six-axle platform from its established Germany–Austria base towards south-east European freight markets.

Balkan Approvals Were in Place Before the New Order

The geographic shift is less about starting a new homologation process than using approvals that are already in place for the EuroDual platform. In April 2026, Stadler confirmed approval for operation in Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia; ELP said Croatia and Slovenia had completed homologation after Serbia was approved in 2023.

Those approvals widen the platform’s potential cross-border footprint before the new 20-locomotive batch enters service. Stadler linked the approvals to freight movement between Central and Southeast Europe, while ELP has positioned the Slovenia–Croatia–Serbia configuration around routes connecting the Adriatic and Central European markets.

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Mixed Electrification Is the EuroDual’s Main Use Case

The EuroDual combines up to 6.2 MW of electric traction with a 2.8 MW diesel engine and 500 kN of tractive effort. That allows one locomotive to work across electrified and non-electrified sections instead of relying on a traction change or diesel-only operation over partly electrified routes.

Stadler said in its April approval announcement that rail electrification in the Balkan region typically ranges between 40% and 50%. That mixed infrastructure is the clearest operating reason for ELP’s south-east European expansion: electric traction can be used where catenary is available, while the diesel engine covers non-electrified sections.

The order also reinforces ELP’s strategy of building its leasing business around six-axle hybrid locomotives rather than separate lighter electric and diesel fleets. The new contract expands that platform strategy geographically, but it does not mean the 20 newly ordered locomotives are already delivered or operating in Croatia, Serbia or Slovenia. The order announcement gives no delivery timetable for the batch.

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