The Cemex Express launched at Dove Holes

CEMEX-branded Class-66 locomotive unveiled by Pete Waterman at official naming ceremony

CEMEX UK and GB Railfreight (GBRf) recently presented a new CEMEX-liveried locomotive at an official naming ceremony at Dove Holes Quarry, near Buxton. The new locomotive, called The Cemex Express, was unveiled at the event by record producer and rail enthusiast Pete Waterman.

Resplendent in the white, blue and red colours of the CEMEX brand, the vehicle recognizes the partnership between GBRf and CEMEX, which has now been in place for one year.

The Cemex Express, a Class-66 locomotive, will typically travel between Dove Holes Quarry and external customers throughout the UK and will pull between 22 and 26 bottom-discharge hopper wagons.

A single trainload will be capable of delivering up to 2,000 tonnes of material and the locomotive will make more than 200 trips for CEMEX each year; equivalent to more than 20,000 truckloads.

David Hart, CEMEX’s supply chain director for the UK and France, commented: ‘The transport of our product by rail is of ever-increasing importance to CEMEX as we look to make our operations as sustainable as possible.

‘Rail is a far more environmentally friendly method of transport than trucks on the road, as a train burns significantly less fuel per tonne-mile than road vehicles, saving around 50% in CO2 emissions.

‘CEMEX UK currently transport 2.6 million tonnes of aggregate by rail each year, which equates to approximately 100,000 trucks off the road – enough to build 40,000 houses – and we want to continue to build on this.

‘We are very proud of our partnership with GBRf and hope that together we will be able to safely transport more and more by rail while reducing the number of truck movements.’

Lex Russell, managing director of UK Materials North at CEMEX, added: ‘Dove Holes is one of CEMEX’s most important quarries and generates several million tonnes of limestone aggregates every year. By rail, we supply many locations across the UK including key cities such as Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, Birmingham and London.

‘It was, therefore, the perfect location to unveil The Cemex Express locomotive and take the opportunity to thank those in our team and at GBRf for their hard work and dedication to our rail partnership.’

John Smith, managing director of GBRf, commented: ‘We are delighted to unveil this fantastic Class-66 locomotive, painted in the CEMEX livery and representing our two organizations’ ongoing partnership. This contract is demonstrative of the role rail freight has to play in helping the UK to cut carbon emissions and improve air quality.’

He continued: ‘On average, 1gal of fuel will move 1 tonne of goods 246 miles on the rail network, whilst the same amount will only get you 88 miles by road. Rail freight’s CO2 emissions are 76% lower than road’s, per tonne carried.

‘An average freight train removes 60 HGV journeys from the roads and the largest up to 160. When this is combined with rail’s advantageous performance in terms of nitrous oxide and particulate matter emissions, rail freight demonstrates a clear contribution to the challenge of meeting the UK’s carbon-cutting targets.’