The first series of Finnish electric locomotives was the Sr1, the mechanical part of which was manufactured in the Novocherkassk Electric Locomotive Factory. Including the prototype, 111 locomotives were delivered from the Soviet Union and completed with their own electrics in Finland. In 1993 another locomotive was assembled from existing spare parts. They are used in front of passenger and freight trains and at times they were converted to a speed of 160 km/h. The first locomotives were retired in 2022.

The three-part Dm3 have been in use for decades on the Luleå–Narvik railway line, which connects the Swedish ore mines near Kiruna and Gällivare with the ports in Luleå, Sweden and Narvik, Norway. To replace these, the IORE was ordered from ADtranz in the 1990s, the name of which is derived from “Iron Ore”. Although these locomotives were later assigned to the TRAXX family by Bombardier, they were actually independent developments that had been developed by the Swiss branch in Oerlikon.

These are double locomotives that consist of two technically independent, six-axle locomotives. Since the ore trains on this route operate at 60 km/h when loaded and at 70 km/h when empty, the maximum speed was limited to 80 km/h. This means that a double locomotive achieves a starting tractive effort of 1,400 kN (315.000 pounds) and can therefore pull trains weighing 8,600 tonnes and containing 6,880 tonnes of iron ore. The vehicles are designed for the harsh climate north of the Arctic Circle and also have appropriate equipment in the cabs.

The axle load was initially 25 tonnes, but was increased to 30 tonnes with ballast after the line was upgraded and new, larger ore hoppers were introduced. Due to increased production in the mines, the Dm3 could not be completely replaced with the nine double units initially ordered. Only after two more orders, which brought the number of pairs to 17, was the last Dm3 could be retired in 2013.

Developed as the first electric locomotive of the NSB, the El 1 was intended for the line between Oslo West and Brakerøya that had been converted to standard gauge and electrified in 1920. It was built completely in Norway with the mechanical part coming from Thunes and the electrical part from Per Kure. In general arrangement, dimensions and appearance it is similar to two German locomotives: the Bavarian EG 2 (later DR E 70²) and the Prussian EG 511 to EG 537 (later DR E 71). This meant that the body was of a crocodile-like or steeplecab design and that there were two two-axle bogies which each had one traction motor that worked on a crank axle and coupling rods. 

In 1922 and 1930, a total of 22 were completed and initially used on the above-mentioned line. Over time, some locomotives also came to other lines and in 1930, two more were built. As these were somewhat heavier, they were designated El 1b and the original ones were now El 1a. They were retired between 1966 and 1973. In this process, two were sold to Rjukanbanen, of which one is now on static display at the Hamar museum. Number 2011 is also being preserved by the same museum and still operational.

The D, introduced in 1925, was the first standard electric locomotive of the SJ that was built in greater numbers. It had the wheel arrangement 1-C-1 and two traction motors which worked on a common crank axle and coupling rods. In the first batches, each traction motor had 610 kW and the locomotive body was made of wood with gangways on the fronts. The freight variant with a gear ratio for 75 km/h was designated Dg, while the passenger variant with a gear ratio for 100 km/h was designated Ds.

After 134 locomotives built, construction of the body switched to steel in 1933. From this point on, the original locomotives were called D (I) and the new ones D (II). Later, when repairs were made on the D (I), the cabs and other parts were rebuilt with steel. Starting in 1936, new traction motors with 735 kW each were installed. When production was completed in 1943, 333 had been built. These included nine built for the Bergslagernas Järnvägar (BJ) and three for the Dalslands Järnväg (DJ), which later came to the SJ.

In the fifties after the introduction of the Da, the D locomotives got the same 920 kW motors. Now they were even powerful enough for freight trains with the 100 km/h gear ratio, what made the distinction between freight and passenger variants superfluous. So they were now called Du, with the “u” standing for “universal”. Between 1967 and 1976, 162 were rebuilt to the Du2 by the removal of the gangway doors and installation of the connectors for multiple controls in the same place. Now they were used double-headed to achieve the same power as two of the new Rc. The first withdrawals had already started in 1967 and all were gone by 1988.

For the ore mining areas in Kiruna and Gällivare in northern Sweden, the ore railway between the Swedish port of Luleå and the Norwegian port of Narvik had already been electrified in the 1920s. When the mining quotas rose sharply after the Second World War, significantly more powerful electric locomotives than those already in existence had to be developed. From 1953, the Dm was created, which consisted of two permanently coupled locomotives with a 1-D wheel arrangement and which had evolved from the Da. With these locomotives, 3,400 tonne ore trains were to be transported from the mining areas either to the port of Luleå on the Gulf of Bothnia or to the Norwegian port of Narvik, which was ice-free all year round.

In each half of the locomotive there were two motors, each with 920 kW, which acted on a crankshaft in the middle between the four coupled axles. The further power distribution then took place via connecting rods. The Norwegian State Railways, which also had a share in the ore railway, ordered four pairs of locomotives of this type and designated them El 12. The special feature of these was that they could be operated separately and individually during daily service. Starting in 1962, the motors were replaced with new ones with 1,035 kW, and the locomotives newly built from that point on received 1,200 kW each, so that each double locomotive had an output of 4,140 or 4,800 kW. By 1971, a total of 76 locomotive halves were built, from which 38 double locomotives could be formed.

In order to hold pace with the ever increasing mining quotas, middle sections were built without a cab and carrying axle and these were coupled between two type Dm locomotives. Ultimately, all locomotive halves with the 1,200 kW motors were used to build three-section locomotives. Since the middle part was called Dm3, the combination Dm+Dm3+Dm was soon also simply called Dm3.

Although the two-section locomotives were also very powerful, the Dm3 were considered the longest and most powerful electric locomotives of their time. Initially, all locomotives were used on the ore railway, but after increasing train weights, the two-section locomotives were moved to more southern areas around 1980 and were used for regular freight trains for a few more years. In the 1990s, the Dm3s underwent a major overhaul, with new electronics installed and driver comfort significantly improved. The modernized locomotives could now be recognized by their blue-grey-red instead of the previous brown livery.

In 1996 all existing ore railway locomotives were handed over to the private MTAB Malmtrafik i Kiruna AB. The two two-section locomotives were renamed to Dm2 and scrapped the following year, but the three-section locomotives were used longer. From the year 2000, the MTAB procured the modern IORE locomotives from Siemens, which gradually made the Dm3 superfluous. The last ones were still in use when in 2012 the MTAB was renamed LKAB Malmtrafik AB after the operating company of the mines, but this changed in 2013 after all IORE had been delivered.

When the Swedish SJ started to electrify many secondary lines in the thirties, they needed powerful electric locomotives with a low axle load. They were not only to be used for passenger and freight trains, but also as a shunter. Features of these locomotives were a centrally mounted cab with pantograph on the roof and sprung traction motors. Anyway, the first variant called Ha built from 1939 did not have satisfying running characteristics and had to be limited to 70 km/h instead of the planned 90 km/h.

In their twelve years of production, different variants were built with incremental improvements. Next after Ha were the Hb and Hc with improvements in design and suspension, which could be approved for 80 km/h. Of the variant Hd, only four were built which had other traction motors and were later rebuilt to the Hg standard. The Hg was the last variant of which 56 were built between 1947 and 1951.

Together with seven Hg built for the TGOJ in 1954, ASEA and Motala Verkstad completed 151 of all variants. To haul heavier freight trains, 36 of the 56 Hg locomotives were equipped with multiple controls between 1972 and 1980. These were designated Hg2. While all locomotives of the Ha variant were scrapped by 1975, the Hb and Hc had followed by 1981 and the Hg and Hg2 were gone by 1993. Today, ten are still existing.