Asia – Page 108
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NewsKazakhstan orders train ferry
KAZAKHSTAN: National railway KTZ has awarded Croatian shipbuilder Uljanik a contract to supply a train ferry in 2017, with an option for a second which would be delivered in 2018. A new rail-served Caspian Sea port is under construction at Kuryk south of Aktau with opening planned for December. The ...
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NewsMongolian iron ore line opened
MONGOLIA: Parliamentary Speaker Zandakhuu Enkhbold has officially opened a 33·4 km rail connection to the Tumurtei iron ore mine development, which is around 200 km north of Ulaanbaatar. The line will be used to transport ore to the Darkhan Metallurgical Plant, with traffic expected to grow from an initial 1 ...
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NewsIran and Azerbaijan launch construction of cross-border railway bridge
ASIA: Construction of a railway bridge over the River Astarachay which forms the border between the two similarly-named towns of Astara in Azerbaijan and Iran was formally launched with a groundbreaking ceremony on April 20. Guests at the event included the heads of the two national railways and the ministers ...
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NewsBaku inaugurates third metro line
AZERBAIJAN: President Ilham Aliyev opened the third metro line in Baku on April 19. The two-station Line 3 is designated the Violet Line and links Avtovağzal with Memar Əcəmi-2, where interchange is provided with the Green Line. Construction started in September 2009 and tunnel boring started in February 2011. At ...
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NewsHerat railway feasibility study contract signed
AFGHANISTAN: The Ministry of Public Works has awarded Canadian consultancy Canarail a contract to undertake a technical feasibility study for a proposed railway which would run from the northwestern city of Herat to the railfreight terminal at Towraghondi on the border with Turkmenistan. The contract was signed on April ...
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NewsToshiba to open Hyderabad electrical systems plant
INDIA: On April 7 Toshiba Corp announced plans to build a rolling stock power conversion and train control system production facility in Hyderabad, which would supply domestic and export markets including the Middle East and Africa. Toshiba Transmission & Distribution Systems (India) is being established as a dedicated railway systems ...
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NewsAir-conditioned EMU arrives in Mumbai
INDIA: The first air-conditioned electric multiple-unit built for Mumbai suburban services by the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai was delivered to Central Railway’s Kurla depot on April 5. Following inspections, the 12-car 25 kV 50 Hz EMU is to be tested on the Thane – Panvel route by ICF, Central ...
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NewsIndia launches first 160 km/h ‘semi high speed’ train
INDIA: What the ministry describes as India’s ‘first semi-high speed train’ was launched by Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu on April 5. The Gatimaan Express between Delhi’s Hazrat Nizamuddin station and Agra Cantonment is now the fastest train India, running at up to 160 km/h to give a journey time ...
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NewsToshkent tram network to close
UZBEKISTAN: Toshkent Mayor Rakhmonbek Usmonov announced on March 29 that the city’s 87·8 route-km tram network is to close by the end of the year. The former tracks will be used to provide additional road space, which the city authorities hope will reduce traffic congestion. Tram services are to be ...
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NewsHokkaido Shinkansen inaugurated
JAPAN: High speed services reached Japan’s third main island on March 26, with the inauguration of the first phase of the Hokkaido Shinkansen. Connecting Shin-Aomori in Honshu with Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto in the south of Hokkaido, the 149 km line uses mixed-gauge tracks in the 54 km Seikan Tunnel under the Tsugaru ...
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NewsJakarta – Bandung DBOM concession agreed
INDONESIA: A 50-year design build operate maintain concession was signed in Jakarta on March 16 between the government and the Sino-Indonesian consortium promoting a 142 km fast passenger line between the capital and Bandung.The concession held by the Kerata Cepat Indonesia Cina consortium takes effect on May 31 2019, when ...
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NewsMyanma Railways orders Indian locomotives
MYANMAR: Indian Railways subsidiary Rites is to supply 18 metre-gauge locomotives to Myanma Railways. The 1 350 hp diesel-electrics for use on passenger and freight services are to be manufactured by the Diesel Locomotive Works at Varanasi, and will have microprocessor controls, fuel-efficient engines and an ergonomic cab design. ...
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NewsTehran – Mashhad capacity increased
IRAN: National railway RAI has completed a €31m project to increase capacity on its 926 km main line between Tehran and Mashhad, with the commissioning of the second phase of its resignalling programme. Building on the introduction of automatic train protection in January 2015, RAI has installed intermediate signals to ...
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NewsDBK-Leasing completes Ijara wagon deal
KAZAKHSTAN: Development Bank of Kazakhstan’s DBK-Leasing subsidiary has completed its first rolling stock transaction meeting Islamic Ijara leasing requirements. The 1·1bn tenge deal covers the provision of 113 LPG tank wagons for use by Eastcomtrans for 10 years, with defined payments and the lessor responsible for insurance and maintenance. ...
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NewsKamchik Tunnel completed
UZBEKISTAN: The first test trains are scheduled to run through the 19·1 km Kamchik Tunnel on April 15, following a ceremony on February 27 which marked the completion of construction works. The tunnel is the key element of the 123 km Angren – Pap railway which is being built at ...
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NewsTEP33A passenger locos enter revenue service
KAZAKHSTAN: National railway KTZ has announced that its first two GE Transportation/LKZ TEP33A locomotives have entered trial passenger service on the Almaty – Aktogay route. KTZ and GE Transportation signed an order for 110 of the Evolution Series locomotives at InnoTrans 2012. They are a passenger version of the TE33A ...
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NewsTülomsaş looks east for export orders
TURKEY: State-owned rolling stock supplier Tülomsaş says it is optimistic about winning more export business in Asia and North Africa as the liberalisation of national railway TCDD requires it to adopt a more commercially-driven business model. Speaking to Railway Gazette International at the Eurasiarail trade fair in Istanbul on March ...
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NewsIndian Railways to meet ‘desires of common man’ by 2020
INDIA: Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu set out a three-pronged strategy of ‘new revenues, new norms and new structures’ when he presented the 2016-17 Indian Railways budget on February 25. Rather than announcing ambitious new projects, Prabhu focused on ongoing programmes, optimising capacity and improving services. He said IR ...
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NewsUIC and OSJD sign co-operation agreement
EUROPE: International Union of Railways Director-General Jean-Pierre Loubinoux and Organisation for Co-operation between Railways Chairman Tadeusz Szozda signed a memorandum of co-operation covering the period 2016-20 on February 23. UIC said co-operation with OSJD would focus on the creation of an ‘interoperable rail transport system’ in the Eurasian region. ...
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NewsMoR unveils Rs107bn capacity stimulus programme
INDIA: Following cabinet approval on February 17, a Rs107bn railway investment stimulus programme covering the double and triple-tracking of several routes has been announced by the Ministry of Railways. To be delivered through ‘extra budgetary resource and institutional funding’, the six schemes around the country are intended to increase capacity ...