CD Cargo and Zeleznicna spolocnost Cargo Slovakia will form one of the biggest freight transporters in Europe.

"In the first stage, we will analyse the project and specify the individual steps, define the merger's all aspects and draw up details of the joint project's further development," Rebicek said.

Rebicek announced the plan to merge both companies at the end of October 2007. He said the new company would be more competitive on the liberalised European market and its price in potential privatisation will be raised as well.

Czechs have mostly welcomed the merger, while Slovak politicians have a more cautious approach.

Czech transport experts mostly agree with the merger. Petr Moos of the transport faculty of the Czech Technical University, for example, sees taking control of freight transport between the east and west of Europe as the main benefit.

CD Cargo is the fifth largest railway freight transporter in the EU. It transported over 90 million tonnes of goods last year.

Cargo Slovakia transports some 50 million tonnes of goods annually, which ranks it somewhere around the tenth place in Europe.

After the merger, the new company would be roughly on the level of Polish railway company PKP which ranks second in the EU. Germany's Deutsche Bahn with 313 million tonnes of goods transported annually is number one.

CD Cargo was established in December 2007 when it separated from parent national railway operator Ceske drahy.

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Czech trains to stop during Tuesday's strike

ČTK: 24.06.2008

Prague -- The engine-drivers will discontinue the operation of the Czech Railways (CD) trains from 13:00 to 14:15 today (Tuesday) to join the trade unions' strike, Libor Polacek, spokesman for the Engine drivers' Federation, said after a meeting of its leadership.

The unions say the reforms launched by the centre-right cabinet of Mirek Topolanek (Civic Democrats, ODS) have resulted in growing inflation that has decreased real pay in education, health care and the public sector. They also criticise the planned pension system reform that is to gradually increase the retirement age to 65.

Most other trade unions will go on a one-hour token strike between 13:00 and 14:00, but the engine-drivers' strike will be 15 minutes longer, Polacek said.

The engine-drivers will thereby protest against the authorities' investigation into a recent tragic accident in east Bohemia in which one of their colleagues died.

Though members of the Railway Workers' Trade Union (OSZ) decided not to actively participate in the strike after their talks with Labour and Social Affairs Minister Petr Necas, Transport Minister Ales Rebicek (both ODS) and the CD's management today, the engine-drivers alone are able to paralyse the Czech railway operation.

Moreover, other CD employees may join some 6000 members of the Engine-drivers' Association, Polacek added.