OWNERSHIP of Class 56 Group locomotive No. 56301, which has been on hire to DCRail since last summer, is due to transfer to the freight operator’s parent company Cappagh Group from April 1 after an agreement was reached to purchase it.
Proceeds of the sale will be used to carry out work on the group’s other locomotive, Romanian-built No. 56006, the first Class 56 to enter traffic with British Rail in February 1977.
A statement on C56G’s website said that the sale of No. 56301 had been anticipated for some time as there were neither the finances nor sufficient working volunteers to preserve two locomotives. Bought by C56G after previous owner Fastline went into receivership in 2010, the locomotive has primarily been regarded as an income generating asset, its main line certification allowing it to be hired to operators by the group’s own company, Class 56 Locomotives Ltd.
Considerations
However, in the longer term, the hire market and potential cost of an overhaul were considered to present too much uncertainty. C56G rejected a recent offer to buy
