On Thursday, 29 January, Talgo’s board of directors held a meeting during which Carlos de Palacio y de Oriol tendered his resignation as chairman after 24 years leading the rolling stock manufacturer. He passed the torch to José Antonio Jainaga, chairman of Sidenor, who heads the consortium that recently acquired a controlling stake in Talgo. With this move, the Oriol family officially loses control of the company.
The board expressed its deep gratitude for the work of de Palacio, grandson of Talgo’s founder, José Luis de Oriol y Urigüen. He joined the board in 1998 as a proprietary director representing the family’s stake, was appointed vice‑chairman in 2000 and took over as chairman in 2002.
Under his leadership, Talgo experienced significant growth: the workforce quadrupled, the company expanded its international footprint with landmark projects such as the Haramain high‑speed line between Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia, and entered key Central European markets including Germany and Denmark, as well as Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Egypt.
In 2015, he oversaw Talgo’s listing on the stock market and, in recent years, completed the exit of private equity fund Trilantic, bringing the company’s headquarters and management back to its Basque roots.
“It is a great satisfaction and a huge relief for me to step down now as chairman, leaving Talgo in the hands of an exemplary Basque industrialist such as José Antonio Jainaga, who will take it far, and to return Talgo to its origins and those of my family,” said Carlos de Palacio Oriol.
On behalf of the board, the new chairman asked de Palacio to remain as chairman of the Talgo Foundation, from where he will continue to support the company and uphold its founding values. This handover marks a return to Talgo’s Basque spirit, closing a cycle that began with its founder and de Palacio’s grandfather.