In a new report, the Swedish Transport Administration has investigated the accident that occurred on the Ore Line on November 7 last year when one of LKAB’s freight trains derailed. The new report shows that the risks of derailment remain and today 19 very heavy trains normally pass on the track.
The derailment took place then due to a rail break, alternatively several rail breaks where the cold temperature was the triggering factor.
The Swedish Transport Administration has plans to upgrade the track in 2027, but writes in the investigation that “more derailments risk occurring on the section during the five-year period that occurs before the planned track change on the Gällivare-Håmojokk section”.
The authority writes that the basic construction of the rails was far too old for the need for heavy traffic that the section currently has. The rails on the section were laid in 1982. The derailed train had a load of 8,495 tonnes.
According to the Swedish Transport Administration, five major derailments have taken place on the Ore Line in the last ten years. The accident that occurred in November last year was the third in three years that occurred on exactly the same route.
The fact that the Swedish Transport Administration has not prioritized measures earlier on the line than by 2027 is considered by the inquiry to be a shortcoming.
The Swedish Transport Administration’s investigators also point out that there were more factors that led to the accident. Above all, that the rails were damaged due to a manufacturing defect. The defect was registered with the manufacturer, but was below the limit levels required for it to be reported to the authority.
DN has previously written about how the Swedish Transport Administration alerted about the shortcomings on the Ore Line one year before the derailment took place.
No one was injured in the accident, but 39 of the train’s 68 freight cars were damaged. The work of transporting the ore away and repairing the railway took just over a week.
For LKAB, the accident meant a major financial blow as the company lost SEK 14 million per day as the track could not be operated.
The Accident Investigation Board is also investigating the incident, which is expected to be completed after the summer.
DN has been in contact with LKAB, which does not want to give an interview where DN can ask follow-up questions about risks of more derailments and what this may mean in accident risks for train drivers. The state-owned company instead leaves a written comment by e-mail.
“The derailment that took place in the winter of 2021 strengthens LKAB’s previous argument for the expansion of the Ore Line. The ore line is a critical part of our logistics chain and with the lack of double tracks, it will of course be extra vulnerable ”.
The Swedish Transport Administration’s investigators who wrote the report do not want to comment to DN on the investigation.
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