KAZAKHSTAN: Alstom and the Kamkor subsidiary of national railway KTZ signed a memorandum of understanding on September 19 setting out plans to establish an equally-owned joint venture to produce point machines for Kazakhstan and the wider 1520 mm gauge market.

Alstom says its designs offer reduced maintenance costs and improved safety when compared with existing products, and KTZ has undertaken year-long testing to verify their resistance to the country's extremely cold winters.