CFL has never posted such results. The rail group closed the 2025 financial year with record turnover of €1.3bn, up 7.9% on 2024, whilst net profit reached €35.3m, compared with €25.6m a year earlier.
“2025 has been a very good year. We have achieved record-breaking turnover and net profit,” said the managing director, 
Whilst the profit figure may seem impressive, the executive urges us to put it into context. “35 million out of a turnover of €1.311bn – it needs to be put into perspective,” he explains. Part of the profit stems from public service contracts with the government, where remuneration depends in particular on performance indicators such as punctuality, safety and the cleanliness of trains. These activities generated around €16m in profit. The remainder comes mainly from activities exposed to competition, notably freight and logistics.
It is precisely in this area that CFL has performed particularly well. The CFL Cargo group posted a record profit of €13.3m, whilst CFL Multimodal returned to profit with a net profit of €3m. Marc Wengler points out, however, that certain one-off factors, notably the sale of wagons, also contributed to the overall performance. “The picture needs to be viewed in context, but across all our activities, we have seen positive developments,” he summarises.
The impact of the strikes
Passenger numbers also remain at a historically high level. CFL carried 31.4 million passengers in 2025, an increase of 0.6% compared with the previous year. The increase is less dramatic than during the post-Covid recovery period, but it confirms an underlying trend. Despite the rise in remote working and operational constraints, rail travel continues to gain users in Luxembourg and the Greater Region.
For Marc Wengler, this steady growth justifies the massive investments made over the past few years. “We are engaged in a historic investment programme with a clear vision,” he says. The aim is to eventually enable the independent operation of the six major lines converging on Luxembourg in order to increase the network’s capacity and reduce the congestion that currently affects the entire system.
In this context, punctuality remains a key indicator under close scrutiny. It stood at 89.6% in 2025, compared with 90.8% a year earlier (-1.2 percentage points). CFL attributes this decline mainly to strikes on neighbouring networks, as well as to constraints linked to major works around Luxembourg station and the Howald transport hub. Excluding industrial action, punctuality would have reached 90.4%. The first few months of 2026 have already seen an improvement, with a rate of 91.4%.
5,345 employees by the end of 2025
Behind these figures lies an increasingly complex challenge. Every day, nearly 1,000 trains run on a radial network whose main hub remains Luxembourg station. “All trains arrive at or depart from Luxembourg,” points out Marc Wengler. The works carried out in recent years – whether the new viaduct to the north, the expansion of Luxembourg station or the conversion of several sections to double track – should gradually help to ease this structural constraint.
This strategy is based in particular on the construction of the new Luxembourg–Bettembourg line, the centrepiece of the transformation of the national rail network. Scheduled to enter service in autumn 2027, it is intended to increase capacity on the country’s busiest route, used daily by tens of thousands of passengers and cross-border commuters. At the same time, CFL completed work on the southern end of Luxembourg station in 2025 and reached a major milestone at Howald with the opening of a second platform. These infrastructure improvements should gradually enable the various lines to be operated more independently and improve the flow of traffic.
This trend is also reflected in employment figures. CFL had 5,345 employees at the end of 2025, compared with 5,199 a year earlier (+146 employees). The group recruited 466 new staff during the financial year, a figure slightly lower than in 2024 (-37 new hires), but which reflects the continued significant need for skills to support mobility and logistics projects.
Still interested in the French network
The 2025 results provide CFL with the means to continue this long-term strategy. The group has invested nearly €159m in its own development and over €327m in rail infrastructure on behalf of the Rail Fund. Ten new Coradia trains entered service during the year and the modernisation of the rolling stock is continuing.
The company is also looking beyond Luxembourg’s borders. When asked about the possible opening up of certain French rail lines to competition, Marc Wengler confirmed that CFL remains alert to opportunities. “If a tender is launched, we will of course consider submitting a bid,” he says.
