Alstom says it expects operations to begin at the 16,000m2 facility by December.

The first vehicles off the assembly line are likely to be the fleet of 32 Citadis LRVs ordered by the VLT Carioca consortium for the 28km Porto Maravilha LRT in Rio de Janeiro in September 2013. Alstom says it expects to build the first of these vehicles in Europe before assembly moves to Taubaté.

The Porto Maravilha LRVs are due to be delivered between early 2015 and mid-2016.