Administrator

CHENNAI Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has awarded a consortium of Alstom and Larsen & Toubro a Euros 73m contract for the design, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the first two lines of the Chennai Metro.

AFTER months of uncertainty and protracted negotiations, the supervisory board of German Rail (DB) has approved plans to acquire up to 300 ICx long-distance trains from Siemens. DB will sign an initial order for 130 trains worth around Euros 6bn next month following a 14-day cooling-off period.

Vossloh Kiepe, and its Spanish affiliate Vossloh Rail Vehicles, has received an order worth Euros 21.8m from the Spanish province of León for four metre-gauge diesel-electric tram-trains. Spanish Narrow-Gauge Railways (Feve) will use the new 38m-long vehicles on the Cistierna to León line.

 

ISRAEL's transport and road safety minister, Mr Yisrael Katz, announced today that he has instructed Israel Railways (IR) to introduce within four months a programme to drastically improve passenger services, particularly safety. If IR fails to do so, the minster has threatened to halt passenger services until the railway is reorganised. Katz has also instructed his general manager Mr Dan Harel to prepare alternative transport arrangements for IR passengers should the need arise.

DB REGIO has signed a Euros 600million, nine-year framework contract with Bombardier for the supply of 200 multi-engine Traxx locomotives for passenger operations. The initial contract for 20 locomotives is worth Euros 62million.

A FEW individuals were given a sneak peak of the new LRV being developed for Bielefeld, Germany, by a consortium of Vossloh Kiepe and HeiterBlick in Leipzig, Germany, earlier this week.

FRENCH Rail Network (RFF) has confirmed that Eiffage will be awarded a public-private partnership contract to build and maintain a 214km high-speed line extension to TGV Atlantique from Le Mans to Rennes. RFF says it will work quickly to conclude the deal by the summer as the line needs to be completed by 2016. Journey times from Paris to destinations in Brittany will be cut by 37 minutes.

PORTUGAL's interim government has announced that it is suspending work on the proposed Portuguese section of the high-speed line between Lisbon and Madrid following the €80bn European Union (EU) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout and the resignation on March 23 of prime minister Mr Jose Socrates.

SWISS Federal Railways (SBB) recorded a 19.3% drop in consolidated profit to SFr 298.3m ($US 321.4m) in 2010 following heavy capital expenditure and the continuing restructuring of its pension plan. Other key figures remained practically unchanged, including operating revenue at SFr 7.84bn and operating expenditure at SFr7.33bn. Operating profit was down by 1% to SFr 509.3m.

IRJ at the UITP 59th World Congress, Dubai: Metrolab is name of the new company launched today jointly by Paris Transport Authority (RATP) and Alstom with the objective of developing a new generation of automatic metro systems. A prototype of the system, which will be suitable for both new projects and refurbishing existing lines, will be completed by 2013 and the finished product will be marketed by RATP and Alstom, either separately or jointly for turnkey projects, as Optimet.