What are Hungarians buying in the Serbian railway sector? – CER Cargo signs agreement to take over unnamed company

The Hungarian railway freight company CER Cargo Group, one of the leading players in rail freight transport in Central and Eastern Europe, has signed an agreement in Belgrade to take over a railway company in Serbia, after completing the acquisition of Austrian utility operator Wiener Lokalbahnen Cargo at the end of December 2025, Hungarian media reported.

The name of the Serbian company that is the subject of the acquisition was not disclosed, and according to the Hungarian portal Hungary Today, the transaction is expected to be finalized by the end of January 2026.

It is added that this announcement is part of the broader strategy of CER Cargo Group, which aims to expand its business in Southeast Europe.

The Hungarian business newspaper Vilagazdasag reported that the expansion into Serbia is part of the Hungarian group’s broader strategy, which aims to provide transport from Hamburg to Istanbul and Athens as its own service, crossing borders in Europe without changing locomotives. The goal, it is stated, is also to lay the foundation for the creation of a new carrier that would transport goods between Europe and China, especially for shipments coming from the Far East.

Vilagazdasag also provided a list of major rail freight operators in Serbia, mentioning the state-owned Srbija Kargo, Rail Cargo Carrier Serbia d.o.o. (part of the Austrian OBB Rail Cargo Group), Kombinovani Prevoz d.o.o, IDS Cargo, Pannon Rail d.o.o. and Transagent Rail d.o.o.

Which company in Serbia is the subject of the planned acquisition can only be guessed at for now – a review of the infrastructure and international presence shows that Srbija Kargo participates in international transport of goods through Serbia, Rail Cargo Carrier Serbia has permanent international lines to Greece, Turkey and Central Europe, while the rest are mostly regional and specialized operators for specific types of cargo, without developed their own international corridors as required by the CER Cargo Group.

As a reminder, on October 1 of last year, CER Austria Cargo GmbH received a standardized safety certificate (SSC) from the Austrian Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI), which paved the way for its own rail freight transport operations in Austria.

With this step, as announced at the time, CER Cargo Group continues to expand its international network, which already includes Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Croatia and Romania, while Serbia and Germany have been announced as the next markets to which the company will expand its operations.