The commercial law firm Orth Kluth advised on public procurement law in connection with the financing of an investment by KfW IPEX-Bank (KfW) of Niederbarnimer Eisenbahn (NEB) in seven hydrogen multiple units for the operation of local public rail passenger transport on the Heidekrautbahn network.

The financing includes the procurement of a total of seven Mireo Plus H hydrogen multiple units from Siemens Mobility as part of a leasing structure with DAL Deutsche Anlagen-Leasing (DAL). The trains, which are equipped with a fuel cell drive and a lithium-ion battery, will replace the diesel-powered vehicles currently in use from 2024 and thus ensure completely CO2-emission-free mobility. The term of the financing is 25 years from delivery of the trains.

The NEB is a railroad company with over 120 years of tradition with operating facilities in Berlin and Brandenburg and operates local rail passenger services on a total of 11 regional railroad lines in the north and east of Brandenburg and in Berlin, including the historic Heidekrautbahn line.

The use of hydrogen vehicles on the Heidekrautbahn is part of a scientifically supported pilot joint project funded by the federal government and the states of Berlin and Brandenburg to develop a regional, sustainable hydrogen infrastructure. The project aims to enable emission-free local transportation based on domestic renewable energies.

The Orth Kluth team led by partner Dr. Michael Sitsen and the two senior associates Dr. Kerstin Bogusch and Maria Najdenova advised on the public procurement law aspects of the financing and was supported by the law firm Ashurst through partner Derk Opitz and senior associate Alexandra Heitmann, who were directly responsible for the financing law advice to KfW IPEX-Bank (KfW).