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The Iron Ore Line: Heavy-haul in the far North
When the world shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic and most countries became inaccessible, one country remained open: Sweden. For a railway engineer, the Malmbanan (the Luleå–Kiruna–Narvik line) is not “just” Europe’s only true heavy-haul railway, but a technical marvel operating with axle loads of 30 tonnes and train consists of up to 750 metres.
My first trip was in May 2020: the X2000 from Copenhagen to Stockholm, followed by the night train to Kiruna. Upon arrival in Kiruna, the rental car was ready — an absolute must if you want to reach the right photo spots between the stations.
The trip made such a strong impression that two years later, in 2022, I had to go again during the summer months. This time the pandemic was over and the large iron ore mines in Kiruna were open, so the starting point of the trip was Luleå in order to cover the entire line.
What makes the stretch between Kiruna and Narvik truly special for both the engineer and the photographer is the combination of extreme logistics and striking visual contrasts.
Travel planning
BEING CREATED
When will the train come?
When railfanning with freight trains, it is always hard to know when they will actually come, as timetables are typically not published (or existing).
However, https://1409.se/ is an online service which show freight train moves in near real-time – or at least it did, when I was visiting (I am not sure if it is a premium feature now).
Another site is https://mobility.portal.geops.io but it only works for passenger trains.
Rolling stock
While the line operates mixed traffic, there are three predominant types of rolling stock
LKAB IORE
The iconic IORE double-locomotives operated by LKAB are among the most powerful electric freight locomotives in Europe and were designed specifically for the iron ore traffic.
- Manufacturer: Bombardier Transportation
- Power: about 10.800 kW per twin set
- Axle load: designed for 30-ton heavy-haul operation
- Train length: typically 68 ore wagons (~750 m)
LKAB transforms the iron ore into small pellets before transport. On the return route, it is sometimes possible to see white additives in the cars as well. However, since outbound shipping is downhill, and inbound is uphill, it is not possible to load all the cars.
Kaunis Iron
While LKAB owns the huge mine in Kiruna, Kaunis Iron operates around Svaapavara. They also ship the material along the Iron Ore Line to Narvik. The material is more raw ore than LKAB, and the wagons looks a bit special because of the unloading method in the terminal.
The trains I saw on this trip was powered by 2-3 Siemens EuroSprinters (class 185):
- Manufacturer: Siemens
- Power: ~6.400 kW
- Strong tractive effort for heavy freight
SJ Rc6 and various wagons
Passenger operation on the line is primarily operated by SJ with Rc6 locomotives and various seating and sleeper wagons.
- Manufacturer: ASEA (later ABB)
- Power: ~3.600 kW
- Top speed: 160 km/h
- Built: 1970s–1980s
- Role: long-distance passenger trains
Photos
Place: Malmö Central Station
Coordinates: 55.60964, 13.00325
Access: Public platform
Rolling stock: X2000 and Öresundståg ET/X31
Place: Kiruna station
Coordinates: 67.86803, 20.19971
Access: Public platform
Rolling stock: Passenger coaches
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.21681, 19.71362
Access: Park at the station, cross the tracks, walk towards Kiruna
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.21684, 19.71075
Access: Park at the station, go up on the hill directly accross the level crossing
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.21684, 19.71075
Access: Park at the station, go up on the hill directly accross the level crossing
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Östra Rautasälven
Coordinates: 67.99029, 19.92388
Access: Park at ‘Rastplats Rautas’ and walk to the river
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Björkliden station
Coordinates: 68.40666, 18.68562
Access: Public platform
Rolling stock: Infranord work vehicles
Place: Björkliden station
Coordinates: 68.40835, 18.68603
Access: Park at the station, walk towards Norway
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive
Place: Electrical substation, side road to E10
Coordinates: 68.43365, 18.59332
Access: Public side road to E10 approximately 10 km from Björkliden station in direction of Norway
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Abisko Turiststation (tourist station)
Coordinates: 68.35750, 18.78188
Access: Public platform
Rolling stock: Kaunis Iron class 185
Place: Abisko Turiststation (tourist station)
Coordinates: 68.35874, 18.7751
Access: Park at the station, walk along the path to the national park approximately 200 meters towards Norway
Rolling stock: SJ Rc6 and passenger coaches
Place: Abisko Östra station
Coordinates: 68.35257, 18.8138
Access: Park at the station, walk along the tracks 100 meters towards Norway
Rolling stock: SJ Rc6 and passenger coaches
Place: Abisko Östra station
Coordinates: 68.35257, 18.8138
Access: Park at the station, walk along the tracks 100 meters towards Norway
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Abisko Östra station
Coordinates: 68.35257, 18.8138
Access: Park at the station, walk along the tracks 100 meters towards Norway
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Stenbacken station
Coordinates: 68.25073, 19.49876
Access: Park at the station, cross the level crossing, walk along towards Norway
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Stenbacken station
Coordinates: 68.24964, 19.50229
Access: Park at the station, cross the level crossing, ascent a bit uphill
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Pessisjokka rastplats
Coordinates: 68.25031, 19.50134
Access: Park at the station, turn right to the small red house
Rolling stock: SJ Rc6 and sleeper coaches
Place: Pessisjokka rastplats
Coordinates: 68.30207, 19.23335
Access: Park at the resting area and cross the street to the river
Rolling stock: SJ Rc6 and passenger coaches
Place: Pessisjokka rastplats
Coordinates: 68.30207, 19.23335
Access: Park at the resting area and cross the street to the river
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Svappavaara
Coordinates: Not sure
Access: Not sure
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Svappavaara
Coordinates: Not sure
Access: Not sure
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Between Kaunis Iron and Svappavaara
Coordinates: 67.66565, 20.97322
Access: Small parking slot at E10 (67.66705, 20.97622), cross the road, use forest road to the railway.
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Between Kaunis Iron and Svappavaara
Coordinates: 67.66565, 20.97322
Access: Small parking slot at E10 (67.66705, 20.97622), cross the road, use forest road to the railway.
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.2166, 19.72087
Access: Park at the station, cross the level crossing, walk along the tracks towards Kiruna
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.2166, 19.72087
Access: Park at the station, cross the level crossing, walk along the tracks towards Kiruna
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.2166, 19.72087
Access: Park at the station, cross the level crossing, walk along the tracks towards Kiruna
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.21663, 19.73002
Access: Difficult – park at the station, cross the level crossing, turn left to the tunnel, continue onwards along the tracks (no path, so through the vegetation on the embankment). Continue until the tracks merge to single track, continue 2-300 meters to just in front of the telecom-mast.
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Torneträsk station
Coordinates: 68.21663, 19.73002
Access: Difficult – park at the station, cross the level crossing, turn left to the tunnel, continue onwards along the tracks (no path, so through the vegetation on the embankment). Continue until the tracks merge to single track, continue 2-300 meters to just in front of the telecom-mast.
Rolling stock: IORE-locomotive + iron ore hoppers
Place: Outskirts of Kiruna
Coordinates: 67.87838, 20.16419
Access: Park at Luossajärvi grillplats
Rolling stock: Speno grinding train
Place: Kiruna station
Coordinates: 67.86842, 20.19919
Access: Public platform
Rolling stock: Vossloh G6 shunting locomotive