As the country's largest consumer of electricity, Belgian railway company SNCB is feeling the weight of the energy crisis and has turned to the government for assistance.
According to the Flemish newspaper De Standard, the SNCB are in the same boat as most Belgian households, with the price of energy bills expected to rise considerably.
The company's current estimate is that their overall energy bill (for electricity, gas, and oil) will be €100 million more this year than in 2020.
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According to company spokesperson Dimitri Temmerman, these inflated prices have forced SNCB to take measures that will soften the blow to their annual budget.
As a result, drivers are being trained in more 'economical' driving where they anticipate accelerations and decelerations. This should make for a smoother ride with fewer erratic stops and starts.
But Temmerman warns that this alone won't be nearly enough to compensate the additional costs linked to the energy crisis. As a result, the company is "reviewing with the government what to do to respond to this situation."
