Medway
MEDWAY is the largest private rail freight operator in the Iberian Peninsula, providing multimodal freight transport (rail, road, sea, air) and integrated logistics services across Portugal and Spain for industrial, trading, and contract logistics customers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersLisboa, Portugal
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Medway does
MEDWAY S.A. is a privately held Portuguese logistics company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Lisbon, operating as the largest private rail freight operator in the Iberian Peninsula. The company provides multimodal freight transport services — rail, road, maritime, and air — across Portugal and Spain, supported by a network of owned terminals (Entroncamento, Sines, Lousado, Aveiro) and partner-operated terminals in Extremadura (Badajoz, Mérida, Navalmoral). It serves industrial and manufacturing clients, international trading companies engaged in cross-border commerce, and customers requiring contract logistics including warehousing, distribution, cross-docking, and reverse logistics.
The company's core technical asset is its rail freight fleet comprising 22+ types of specialized wagons and the ETCS+STM signaling system under dynamic testing. It operates two wholly-owned maintenance and repair facilities (Entroncamento and Poceirão) that service locomotives and wagons, plus mobile intervention teams for in-field service. Supporting digital assets include an online Environmental Simulator that quantifies CO2 savings from modal shift to rail (advertised at ~70% reduction vs. road transport) and a Sustainable Transport Certificate program. The company also runs MEDWAY Training, a railway vocational training subsidiary.
MEDWAY generates revenue through customized, quote-based B2B contracts with multi-year cadences across five streams: railway transport services, integrated multimodal logistics, maritime and air freight, road transport (groupage, co-loading, consolidation), and maintenance/repair services. Distribution is sales-led via dedicated commercial departments segmented by geography and service line (Portugal transport, Spain transport, road, terminals, rolling stock). The company has no public listing, no disclosed parent, and no institutional funding rounds, with ownership concentrated privately and leadership under President Carlos Vasconcelos.
Medway firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Medway
- Legal name
- MEDWAY S.A.
- Website
- https://medway-iberia.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- MEDWAY is the largest private rail freight operator in the Iberian Peninsula, providing multimodal freight transport (rail, road, sea, air) and integrated logistics services across Portugal and Spain for industrial, trading, and contract logistics customers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Medway industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Rail Freight Transport & Multimodal Logistics
- NAICS
- Line-Haul Railroads (482111), Rail Transportation (48211), Water Transportation (483), Deep Sea Freight Transportation (483111)
- SIC
- Railroads, Line-Haul Operating (4011), Railroad Switching & Terminal Establishments (4013), Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731), Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) (4210), Deep Sea Foreign Transportation Of Freight (4412), Air Transportation, Nonscheduled (4522)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Terminal Cargo Handling & Yard Operations (Receiving, Staging, Delivery) (TLAHALAB)
Keywords
Where Medway is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lisboa
- HQ country
- Portugal
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices8 records
Markets served
Medway business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Railway Transport Services: Primary revenue stream from rail freight transport services across the Iberian Peninsula, offering transportation of containers, semi-trailers, and various cargo types.
- Multimodal Logistics Services: Integrated logistics services including transport logistics, terminals, warehousing, contract logistics, cross-docking, distribution, and reverse logistics.
- Maritime and Air Freight: Shipping transport and air transport services for international freight, including chartering and multimodal sea-air solutions.
- Road Transport: Road freight transport services through collaboration agreements, including groupage, co-loading and consolidation services.
- Maintenance and Repair Services: Railway equipment maintenance and repair services at workshops in Entroncamento and Poceirão.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Customized transport solutions |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels8 records
Medway product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Medway operates rail freight transport and integrated multimodal logistics services across the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal and Spain). Its core offering is railway transport supplemented by road, maritime, and air freight services, with an owned terminal network, contract logistics (warehousing, distribution, customs clearance), and dedicated railway maintenance and repair workshops. The company is positioned as the largest private rail freight operator in the Iberian Peninsula.
Product overview
MEDWAY is a logistics operator and the largest private rail freight operator in the Iberian Peninsula, offering a comprehensive multimodal transport portfolio. The core offering consists of Railway Transport as the primary service, complemented by Shipping, Air Transport, and Road Transport for flexible freight solutions. Supporting infrastructure includes Terminals (Entroncamento, Sines, Lousado, Aveiro) for intermodal connections and Maintenance & Repair services for railway equipment. Additional services include Transport Logistics (contract logistics, warehousing, distribution, customs clearance), MEDWAY Training for professional development, the Environmental Simulator for CO2 calculation, and Sustainable Transport Certificates for environmental certification. The company operates across Portugal and Spain, serving the competitiveness and logistical development of the Iberian Peninsula.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MEDWAY Maintenance & Repair: Railway maintenance and repair services with facilities in Entroncamento and Poceirão
- MEDWAY Training
- Sustainable Transport Certificate
Products and services
- Railway Transport
Quantifiable outcome
- Reduces CO2 emissions by approximately 70% compared to road transport, reaching 74% when using exclusively electric locomotives
Companies that use Medway
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Medway technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Medway partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and major.
- AlstomcoreCollaboration on ETCS+STM system dynamic testing project, combining international technology partners for railway modernization.
- SidercorePartner in ETCS+STM system dynamic testing project for railway innovation.
- HitachisupportingTechnology partner in ETCS+STM dynamic testing project.
- Critical SoftwaresupportingTechnology partner providing software expertise for ETCS+STM dynamic testing project.
- TRANSITALIAmajorCollaboration in pioneering first-ever rail transport of semi-trailers in Portugal, connecting Spain to Entroncamento via Badajoz on the East Line. This operation required extraordinary technical and operational preparation.
- TRAMESAmajorCollaboration in pioneering first-ever rail transport of semi-trailers in Portugal, marking a decisive step in expansion and modernization strategy.
- Extremadura Avante LogísticasupportingPartner terminal operator at Badajoz, Mérida, and Navalmoral locations in Spain, part of MEDWAY's strategic geographic network.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Medway competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Fercam: Italian multimodal logistics operator with rail, road, and warehousing capabilities. Comparable to MEDWAY in service portfolio (rail + road + contract logistics) but focused on Italy rather than Iberia.
Others
- Geodis: Global multimodal logistics provider with rail freight, road, sea-air, contract logistics, and terminal services. Comparable to MEDWAY's integrated multimodal value proposition but operating at vastly greater scale across multiple continents.
- Kuehne+Nagel: Global freight forwarder with multimodal capabilities including rail, road, sea, and air, plus contract logistics. Comparable to MEDWAY's multimodal transport and logistics services, though operating primarily as an asset-light forwarder rather than a rail asset operator.
Broad incumbents
- DB Cargo: Largest rail freight operator in Europe (Deutsche Bahn subsidiary). Comparable as a multinational rail freight incumbent with multimodal, terminal, and M&R capabilities far exceeding MEDWAY's scale, providing a benchmark for pan-European expansion.
- SNCF Fret: French state-owned rail freight operator and parent of Captrain. Comparable as a national rail freight champion with multimodal logistics, M&R, and international corridor services; relevant peer for state vs. private operator dynamics.
- Rail Cargo Group: Austrian rail freight operator with broad European coverage including intermodal and wagon-load services. Comparable to MEDWAY as a multi-country rail freight operator with strong terminal and logistics integration.
Direct peers
- BLS Cargo: Swiss private rail freight operator providing cross-border services through Alpine corridors. Comparable to MEDWAY as a private-sector, mid-sized European rail freight operator competing against state incumbents.
- Renfe Mercancías: State-owned freight rail operator in Spain and the dominant player on the Iberian rail freight market. Directly comparable to MEDWAY as the principal competitor on cross-border and domestic Spanish rail freight corridors, with overlapping multimodal and terminal capabilities.
- Transitalia: Italian rail freight operator and MEDWAY's named partner in the first Portuguese semi-trailer rail transport (Nov 2025). Comparable as a specialized private rail freight operator with cross-border Iberian/Italian reach and semi-trailer intermodal expertise.
- Captrain España: Private rail freight operator in Spain, part of the Captrain (SNCF Group) network. Competes with MEDWAY on Iberian freight corridors with similar wagon-based service offerings and access to ADIF infrastructure.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Medway social profiles
Digital presenceMedway financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Medway leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Medway subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
Medway funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Medway M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Medway
What does Medway do?
Medway operates rail freight transport and integrated multimodal logistics services across the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal and Spain). Its core offering is railway transport supplemented by road, maritime, and air freight services, with an owned terminal network, contract logistics (warehousing, distribution, customs clearance), and dedicated railway maintenance and repair workshops. The company is positioned as the largest private rail freight operator in the Iberian Peninsula.
Is Medway a public or private company?
Medway is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Medway founded?
Medway was founded in 2016. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Medway based?
Medway is headquartered in Lisboa, Portugal, in the Europe region.
How does Medway make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Railway Transport Services are the primary driver. The others are multimodal Logistics Services, maritime and Air Freight, road Transport and maintenance and Repair Services.
Who are Medway's main competitors?
Fercam is listed as a regional player. Others are Geodis and Kuehne+Nagel. Broad incumbents are DB Cargo, SNCF Fret and Rail Cargo Group. Direct peers are BLS Cargo, Renfe Mercancías, Transitalia and Captrain España.
Does Medway have an API?
No public API is recorded for Medway.
What industry is Medway in?
Medway's product category is Rail Freight Transport & Multimodal Logistics. Its primary akta.pro industry code is TLAHALAB, Terminal Cargo Handling & Yard Operations (Receiving, Staging, Delivery). Its NAICS code is 482111 and its SIC code is 4011.