The robustness of NS’s financial position is clear from the structure and the composition of its capital, the available cash and cash equivalents and the fact that it has committed credit facilities. Standard & Poor’s (S&P), a leading agency that investigates the financial position of companies, has given NS Groep NV a credit rating of AA- with a stable outlook (based on an underlying credit profile of single A, currently raised by two levels in recognition of the relationship with the shareholder, the Dutch State). In part because of the main rail network franchise for 2015-2024, NS is currently investing heavily in trains, stations and systems and will continue to do so over the next few years. Based on the NS business plan and the initiatives it contains for improving results, NS expects that the available cash flows, the financing capacity and the availability of a residual value scheme for the rolling stock will be sufficient to let it carry out its investment programme of approximately €6 billion in the period through to 2024. The realisation of these improvement initiatives will require a substantial effort from everyone at NS over the next few years.