Rail Innovators Group
Rail Innovators Group (RIG) is a Dutch private holding company operating across four integrated segments of the rail freight industry, headquartered in Rotterdam.
History and development
RIG traces its origins to 2005, when the first company in the group was established in the Netherlands. The current group structure and holding company were formalised in 2011 under the direction of Julian Remie, who remains the majority shareholder. The group expanded progressively across European freight markets through organic growth and structured investment.
In 2016, Rail Innovators Group established Rail Force One for the operation of freight trains; the carrier ran its first services under its own licence in July 2017, initially focused on automotive trains between Bad Bentheim and PON in Leusden before extending into broader cross-border corridors.
In 2021, Reichmuth Infrastructure and PCS Holding — the investment company of Swiss industrialist Peter Spuhler — jointly acquired a 49% stake in RIG’s wagon leasing subsidiary Railrelease through their shared investment vehicle CargoRoll Holding AG. Following two years of cooperation, the partnership was extended to a 49% stake directly in the group’s holding company, again structured through CargoRoll Holding AG.
Business units
RIG operates through four companies — Raillogix, Rail Force One, Railrelease, and Combo Wagon Service — providing services across rail freight logistics, traction, wagon leasing, and maintenance. The four units are designed to function as a closed system: Raillogix manages freight logistics, Rail Force One provides traction, Railrelease supplies wagons, and Combo Wagon Service handles maintenance and repair.
Rail Force One operates from Rotterdam with additional offices in Duisburg and Warsaw, providing national and international traction services across the Netherlands, Germany, and Poland. Raillogix’s network extends to land-bridge connections between Europe, Asia, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).
Scale and ownership
RIG employs approximately 250 people, operates across 23 European countries, and has subsidiaries in the Czech Republic and Poland. The group generated revenues exceeding EUR 150 million in its most recent financial year, having tripled revenue over the preceding five years. Julian Remie holds 51% of the holding company; the remaining 49% is held through CargoRoll Holding AG, the joint investment vehicle of Reichmuth Infrastructure and PCS Holding.
Leadership
With effect from 1 June 2026, Michail Stahlhut assumes the role of CEO. Stahlhut previously served as CEO of SBB Cargo International from 2010 to 2018 and subsequently as CEO of Hupac, which he left in late 2025. Founder Julian Remie transitions to Executive Chairman, retaining responsibility for strategy and long-term development. The appointment separates the CEO and founder roles for the first time in the group’s history.
RIG operates as a vertically integrated platform — combining logistics, traction, wagon leasing, and maintenance within a single ownership structure — distinct from network integrators such as Hupac, which coordinate across third-party assets. Stahlhut’s background in running complex cross-border freight operations at scale is directly applicable to that model.
Technology and sustainability
In 2018, RIG and CRRC ZELC concluded a joint development agreement to produce zero-emission shunting locomotives for the Port of Rotterdam, targeting replacement of diesel shunting operations. The locomotive is designed to operate under multiple network voltages, equipped with high-capacity batteries and an intelligent braking energy regeneration system, enabling use on non-electrified lines and first- and last-mile shunting without diesel traction. As of the agreement’s public announcement in 2021, Rail Force One was expected to put the first units into service at the port in 2024.
The programme involves a trilateral collaboration between RIG, CRRC ZELC, and the Port of Rotterdam Authority, with the port authority supporting implementation and providing operational analysis for an industry proof of concept.