THE European Rail Supply Industry Association (Unife) has waded into the debate on how best to meet the estimated €546bn cost of building a comprehensive high-speed network for Europe by proposing to use revenue from the European Union’s (EU) Emissions Trading System (ETS).
It is the most eye-catching recommendation made in a wider Unife paper on the subject published on May 7.
The European Commission (EC) presented its High-Speed Masterplan as a blueprint for a comprehensive high-speed network in Europe in November 2025. The plan envisages the construction of new lines and upgrading existing infrastructure to strengthen cross-border connectivity and enable operation at 250km/h and above between major cities.
The document includes a commitment to deliver the High Speed Rail Deal financing strategy for the new network this autumn. The deal aims to better coordinate public and private finance, and will be based on strategic dialogue between EU member states, industry and financial institutions.
The masterplan estimates the cost of the complete network, equivalent to tripling Europe’s existing high-speed network, at €546bn, of which €345bn would cover delivery of the planned TEN-T network. The EC is aiming to use a mixture of member state funding, EU grants and private finance to deliver the plan, which it says will provide a net benefit of €750bn.
Unife welcomes the plan’s objectives, aligning with targets set out in the EC’s Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy of 2021, which aim to double high-speed traffic by 2030 and triple it by 2050, and make public transport on distances under 500km carbon-neutral in the EU by 2030.
With financing uncertain, Unife makes several recommendations to deliver the plan in full. Alongside its suggestion on using ETS revenue is the development of infrastructure bonds, or debt backed by future revenue, to attract private capital and institutional investors to support future high-speed projects. Unife also calls for rail infrastructure projects to benefit from the EU’s new €409bn Competitiveness Fund, and to double the grant funding available in the next Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) from the €51.7bn contained in the draft position to up to €100bn under the next EU budget for 2028-2034.
Recommendations
In addition, the association has issued key recommendations to enable delivery of the plan:
- ensure public grants both from the EU and member states, including with the support of ETS revenues, continue to be the predominant means of funding high-speed rail infrastructure projects
- create an investment-friendly ecosystem and develop a long-term strategy for high-speed rail infrastructure to promote private finance
- ensure that the financing of the European high-speed rail network primarily relies on a combination of EU and national grants and publicly-backed debt financing, complemented by private lending and independent financial institution (IFI) or export credit agency (ECA) support, rather than on public-private partnerships (PPP), as the complexity and long-term fiscal implications of PPPs may outweigh their potential benefits
- reduce the lead time for new high-speed rolling stock by shortening the design phase while accelerating the validation phase
- incentivise the adoption of digital tools and data deliverables to de-risk high-speed rail infrastructure projects
- further promote the systematic use of advisory services to provide strategic, technical, and financial guidance throughout the project lifecycle from feasibility to operations, in order to ensure safe, efficient, and cost-effective development, and
- establish a holistic strategy that supports European suppliers over those from high-risk countries outside Europe to ensure technological sovereignty and industrial resilience.
“Our supply chains, passenger networks, climate ambitions, military cohesion, and according to the Draghi report, the EU itself, hinge on a next-generation high-speed rail network that connects us all,” says Unife director general, Enno Wiebe.
“We all share a common vision for Europe’s high-speed rail network, but now we must talk funding. It’s time for the main polluters to contribute their fair share to building a sustainable and future-ready European transport network.”
The June edition of IRJ will include an in-depth report on how Europe might finance its proposed high-speed network, including exclusive insight from banks and ECAs.
