Asia – Page 122
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NewsUlaanbaatar Railway orders coaches
MONGOLIA: Ulaanbaatar Railway has awarded Transmashholding's Tver Carriage Works a contract to supply 12 second and two first class compartment coaches, and a staff car with a compartment adapted for a person with reduced mobility and an accompanying person. The air-conditioned coaches will be based on the 61-4440 and 61-4445 ...
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NewsSiC power module offers savings
INVERTER: Mitsubishi Electric Corp has launched a traction inverter system for 1·5 kV DC applications which it says incorporates the first all-silicon carbide power modules using SiC for both transistors and diodes. This reduces power loss, size and weight compared to conventional IGBT power modules or hybrid modules with silicon ...
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JR Central names Chairman
JAPAN: JR Central has announced that its current President Yoshiomi Yamada (left) is to become Chairman of the company with effect from April 1. He will succeed Yoshiyuki Kasai (centre), who becomes Chairman Emeritus, and will in turn be replaced as President by the railway’s current Executive ...
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NewsKolar coach factory approved
INDIA: Plans to establish a coach factory at Kolar in Karnataka were approved by the cabinet on February 28. The plant would produce 500 LHB type vehicles a year for Indian Railways. The state government is to provide the land for the factory and meet the half of the expected ...
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NewsSpecial rail fastenings for Mongolian heavy haul coal line
MONGOLIA: Samsung C&T Engineering Construction Mongolia has awarded Vossloh Fastening Systems a contract to supply specially-developed MNG 30 rail fastenings for 270 km of 1 520 mm gauge track it is laying for a 217 km heavy haul railway which will link the Tavan Tolgoi coal mines to the Chinese ...
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NewsOptimism returns but skills gap a worry, survey finds
INTERNATIONAL: Optimism is returning to the global rail industry following the economic downturn, according to the results of the fifth Way Ahead survey of the transport industry conducted by legal practice Norton Rose Fulbright. The survey, which was launched at an event in London on February 26, received 850 responses ...
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NewsDouble-tracking progress in southern Java
INDONESIA: Japan Transportation Consultants has been awarded a US$15m contract by the Directorate-General of Railways to supervise the double-tracking of 76 km of the southern trans-Java main line. The award of the marks a further stage of work to enhance capacity and reduce journey times on the main line between ...
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NewsFunding constrains ambitions in 2014 Indian Railways budget
INDIA: The parlous state of Indian Railways' finances was flagged up by Railways Minister Mallikarjun Kharge when he presented an interim budget to the lower house of parliament on February 12. With elections expected in May, the interim budget is intended to keep IR operational until the new government takes ...
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NewsHigh speed line planning continues
THAILAND: Work on the first of four planned high speed lines is continuing amid the ongoing political instability, the Office of Transport & Traffic Policy & Planning has confirmed. OTTPP Director Chula Sukmanop said that efforts to finalise the route alignment and consult with local people for a 750 km ...
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NewsWabtec acquires Fandstan Electric Group
UK: On February 12 Wabtec Corp announced that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire Fandstan Electric Group for US$215m. UK-based Fandstan Electric has 1 000 employees in Europe, China, Australia and the USA, manufacturing electric current and data collection products including pantographs, shoe gear, electrical contacts and ...
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NewsCabinet backing for Indian locomotive factories
INDIA: Plans to establish two locomotive factories in Bihar through PPP contracts with international manufacturers took a step forward on January 20, when the cabinet gave its approval for bids to be invited within six months. The cabinet had previously backed the long-running project last May, when it had ...
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NewsKTMB concession plan rejected
MALAYSIA: A plan to contract out national railway KTMB’s train operating activities to a consortium of local firms MMC and Gamuda has been cancelled by the government. The two groups, which have interests in engineering, logistics and shipping, are understood to have been in discussions with the government for more ...
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NewsFirst Korean PowerHaul locomotive on test
SOUTH KOREA: National operator Korail has begun testing the first of 25 GE Transportation PowerHaul locomotives which are being built in South Korea. Designated Class 7600, Korail ordered the locomotives in 2011 from a partnership of Hyundai Rotem and GE Transportation. They are intended for use on passenger and freight ...
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NewsBattery EMU ready to start testing
JAPAN: East Japan Railway's Series EV-E301 prototype 1·5 kV DC/battery electric multiple-unit was delivered to the Karasuyama Line on January 22, ready for the start of test running. Branded 'Accum', the two-car unit is derived from the experimental 'Smart Denchi-kun' battery railcar which was tested on the same line in ...
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NewsTracklaying completed on trans-Kazakhstan rail link
KAZAKHSTAN: Two new lines are on course to open later this year, after ceremonies in December marked the joining of the tracks being laid from each end of the routes. According to national railway KTZ the lines are of an economic and social importance with it would be 'difficult ...
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NewsJR East reorganises train building activities
JAPAN: With effect from April 1 East Japan Railway is to transfer its Niitsu Rolling Stock Plant manufacturing business to Japan Transport Engineering Co, the former Tokyu Car business which JR East acquired from Tokyu Corp in April 2012. The transfer to J-TREC is to be undertaken through a company ...
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NewsThales wins East Japan Railway CBTC contract
JAPAN: East Japan Railway has selected Thales as preferred bidder for a contract to design a communications-based train control system for Joban Local Line in the greater Tokyo area. The scope includes 14 stations on the 29·7 km Ayase - Toride route, along with 70 trainsets. Subject to a final ...
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NewsTesting underway on Ankara – Istanbul fast line
TURKEY: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined newly-appointed transport minister Lütfi Elvan in the cab of a CAF trainset to travel over the Arifiye – Köseköy section of the Ankara – Istanbul high speed corridor on December 27. Elvan has replaced Binali Yıldırım, who has stood down after 11 years ...
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NewsChina opens seven new lines
CHINA: The 514 km coastal line between Xiamen and Shenzhen in southeast China was opened for revenue service on December 28. This completes the link between the Beijing – Guangzhou – Shenzhen Passenger-Dedicated Line and the east coast route which starts in Shanghai and serves Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Fujian and ...
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NewsChinese rail projects approved
CHINA: The final 527 km of the Southern Xinjiang line between Aksu and Korla opened for traffic on December 5 with the departure of a freight train from Aksu. The 1449 km line has been built in stages with the fiorst phase opening in 1984. It is designed for 160 ...