Goodbye, Janikosoda!
The Janikosoda soda production plant was established in the 1950s in the then-village of Janikowo. The population of Janikowo skyrocketed directly afterwise to accommodate for the needed workforce in the new facility. With many ups and downs in its history, the plant retained its very Soviet feel. It was positioned on the fields near the town and stood out of the rural background of Kujawy.
Sadly, with increasing competition from Turkey and ever-rising EU taxes on industry, the company Qemetica, previously Ciech, which owns the soda factory in Janikowo is forced to shut down production. The process has been ongoing since february of this year, when there was a week long stop in production of soda in the facility. The entire production is to be shut down... tommorow, with the end of July 2025.
In May, we made a spontaneous visit near the factory, and by sheer accident managed to photograph SM42-2369 right as it was shunting with a couple of wagons near the factory premises. The loco was produced in 1976 and was assigned to the soda plant since then. After the company Transoda organised all soda transport in Poland, the locomotive kept being shifted between the different plants. Ultimately, its home factory ends its career but the loco persists.
Photo by Piotrek/Toprus
Goodbye, Janikosoda!
The Janikosoda soda production plant was established in the 1950s in the then-village of Janikowo. The population of Janikowo skyrocketed directly afterwise to accommodate for the needed workforce in the new facility. With many ups and downs in its history, the plant retained its very Soviet feel. It was positioned on the fields near the town and stood out of the rural background of Kujawy.
Sadly, with increasing competition from Turkey and ever-rising EU taxes on industry, the company Qemetica, previously Ciech, which owns the soda factory in Janikowo is forced to shut down production. The process has been ongoing since february of this year, when there was a week long stop in production of soda in the facility. The entire production is to be shut down... tommorow, with the end of July 2025.
In May, we made a spontaneous visit near the factory, and by sheer accident managed to photograph SM42-2369 right as it was shunting with a couple of wagons near the factory premises. The loco was produced in 1976 and was assigned to the soda plant since then. After the company Transoda organised all soda transport in Poland, the locomotive kept being shifted between the different plants. Ultimately, its home factory ends its career but the loco persists.
Photo by Piotrek/Toprus