Network Rail reports £11.3bn revenue in first year of CP7

LONDON - Network Rail Limited reported revenue of £11.3bn for the financial year ended March 31, 2025, down from £11.6bn in the previous year, as the company began its five-year Control Period 7 (CP7) spending plan.

The infrastructure manager posted a profit before tax of £0.7bn, a significant decrease from £1.5bn in the previous financial year, according to the annual report published Monday.

The company cited reduced government revenue grants as the primary factor behind the revenue decline, which was partially offset by increased regulated charges, freight income and retail revenues.

Operating costs rose to £8.1bn from £7.5bn, driven by increased maintenance activity, inflationary pressures, and higher depreciation charges. Capital investment for the year stood at £6.2bn, down from £6.8bn in the previous period.

"We are continuing to build further on the £4bn of efficiencies we made in our previous control period, which ran from 2019 to 2024," said Jeremy Westlake, Chief Financial Officer for Network Rail. "Our target is to achieve £3.9bn of efficiencies in CP7 and we have made a good start, one that is ahead of our delivery plans."

The company reported strong progress against its CP7 Delivery Plan, with early momentum in delivering targeted efficiencies. Network Rail published a refreshed CP7 Delivery Plan in March 2025, reflecting the impact of inflation, constrained public finances, and increased investment to mitigate climate-related risks.

The rail network’s valuation included a £556m upward movement, primarily driven by indexation inflation of 2.6% which added £2.3bn to the valuation, partially offset by expected performance impacts and asset amortization.

According to the statement, all profits are reinvested into the railway, primarily to fund infrastructure renewals.

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