In the wake of the delay in the delivery of the scandal-ridden
IC4 trains, it was proposed several times through the late '00s and early '10s to electrify the main line of the Danish railway network in order to be able to buy proven standard equipment to remedy the growing shortage of train equipment. However, this was rejected just as many times, as electrification of the railway network would require a simultaneous upgrading of the signaling system, which was already being replaced throughout the country by
ERTMS 2. In this context, the Esbjerg-Lunderskov section was interesting, because in 1997 the section had already been almost completely upgraded in preparation for a forthcoming electrification, just before the electrification program was cancelled. On 7 February 2012, the
Social Democrats, the
Radical Left,
SF,
Venstre,
DF,
Liberal Alliance and the
Conservative People's Party therefore agreed to electrify the track, so it was ready for electric trains by the end of 2015. The main idea behind the electrification was that it would allow for the rapid purchase of 15 new electric train sets, which could replace a similar number of IC3 train sets. To further secure the track for the future, it was subsequently decided, on 12 March 2013, by the same conciliation group to electrify the track with a system rated for . Electrification was later postponed to 2016 due to economies of scale, as the contractors could thereby go directly from this section to the other sections that were to be electrified subsequently. The electrification was begun on 6 August 2017, but was later hit by operational problems and a complete shutdown for electric trains, due to problems with the
Siemens Sicat SX overhead distribution system. After a replacement of the faulty rope wheels, the track was reopened for electric operation on 13 August 2018. == References ==