Delta Rail is a combined transport operator which “designs and operates reliable and competitive rail solutions to promote modal shift and decarbonisation in freight transport,” the spokesperson explained. The launch of the service coincides with the LET EXPO trade fair in Verona (Italy), from 10 to 13 March, where the Modal Group will be present, the spokesperson added.

Dunkirk to be added to route

The Group’s rebranding was announced earlier this month, the identity change reflecting a widening spectrum of service offerings as it moves towards a more integrated model, which includes its own new rail business. At the end of last year, the then Modalis Group and the Port of Dunkirk laid the foundation stone of a combined rail-road freight transhipment terminal.

The facility is due for completion in Spring 2026 with its first scheduled service to be launched in September linking Dunkirk to Lyon and Piacenza, with onward connections to Rome, Naples and Bari. Three weekly round trips are planned which could rise to five in 2027. Italian shippers are said to be keen to have on-forwarding solutions to the UK and Ireland market and will be able to take advantage of Danish ro-ro shipping company DFDS’ ferry services from Dunkirk to Dover and Rosslare.

To that end, MODAL Group announced that it had completed several major projects to enhance its scope of expertise, the Group says. For example, it has launched MODALIS Intermodal in the United Kingdom for intermodal equipment leasing. It also established Air Flow Shanghai Logistics, which specialises in air gas intermodal logistics.

MODAL Group also acquired SOMAP Technologies F13. This company specialises in the maintenance, inspection and reconditioning of pressurised equipment, such as cylinders and containers for industrial and cryogenic gases.

A new rail business – TRAIX

If that was not enough yet, the Group is also launching its own rail traction company that will go by the name TRAIX. It is scheduled to start operating in 2026 to offer “a smoother, integrated rail transport solution.”

Lastly, says MODAL Group, it is strengthening its presence in the French region Lorraine through subsidiary Terminaux Multimodaux. It has won the contract to manage logistics at five ports in the area on behalf of Voies Navigables de France (VNF), alongside its partners Rhenus Logistics, Dunkerque Port and MGE.

MODAL Group underlines that it has set course towards an integrated business approach. It wants its service to cover the entire freight journey: engineering, intermodal terminals, intermodal transport units, future energy logistics, maintenance and rail traction.

These steps are accompanied by the establishment of a Board of Directors, consisting of Bernard Meï, Group Chairman and Founder, Pierre Fiat, Air Flow Managing Director and four external directors: Sylvie Perrin (De Gaulle Fleurance), Bob Fast (former TIP Chairman), Simon Hamilton (Chetwode) and Daniel Chapiro (GL Events). This should bring the needed expertise to enable secure structural investments, external growth operations and international development.