High speed rail industry news – Page 32
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NewsHigh speed to Extremadura in 2019
SPAIN: The Ministry of Development says that it remains on course to open in 2019 the first section of the high speed line between Madrid and Badajoz, in the Extremadura region close to the border with Portugal. With tracklaying now in progress, the first section to enter service with diesel ...
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NewsHS2 Ltd begins procurement of London stations construction partners
UK: The process to appoint the Construction Partners for High Speed 2’s London Euston and Old Oak Common stations has been formally launched by project promoter HS2 Ltd. It expects to issue invitations to tender to shortlisted bidders by the end of the year and award the contracts in autumn ...
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NewsNSK receives first bearing order from SNCF
FRANCE: NSK has received its first order for wheelset bearings as a qualified supplier to SNCF, following a five-year process to obtain approval for their use on TGV trainsets. NSK worked closely with the operator to ensure that its requirements were met, with audits of its manufacturing processes and extensive ...
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NewsTrenitalia agrees to acquire V250 trainsets
ITALY: Trenitalia has agreed to acquire 17 of the former Fyra V250 trainsets to expand its high speed train fleet. The contract includes five years of ‘full-service’ maintenance with an optional five-year extension. According to a notice published in the Official Journal of the EU on August 11, Trenitalia says ...
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NewsHigh speed rail promoter Texas Central selects planning and construction contractors
USA: Privately-financed high speed line project promoter Texas Central has appointed Fluor Enterprises and The Lane Construction Corp to refine the construction planning, scheduling and cost estimates for the project, and to support procurement. It is envisaged that the two contractors would also design and build the project following financial ...
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NewsInner Mongolia high speed line opens
CHINA: Revenue services on the 126 km Hohhot – Ulanqab section of the future Hohhot – Zhangjiakou high speed line in Inner Mongolia began on August 3. Trial running had begun on June 29. Construction of the 287 km Hohhot –Zhangjiakou line started in April 2014, and revenue services on ...
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NewsChina to reinstate 350 km/h operation
CHINA: Test running at speeds up to 350 km/h is underway on the Beijing – Shanghai line, as part of China Railway Corp’s plan to reinstate the previous national maximum speed six years after it was reduced to 300 km/h in the wake of the Wenzhou collision in July 2011. ...
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NewsTGV resurgence in SNCF first half results
FRANCE: The SNCF group reported a €119m net profit in the first six months of 2017, driven by strong growth in high speed ridership.Amid concerns about the competitive threat facing the French national operator from long-distance buses and ride-sharing apps, SNCF reported on July 28 that overall group revenue was ...
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NewsMore high speed in the Mediterranean Corridor
SPAIN: Tendering is to start in 2019 for a high speed line between Valencia and Castelló, according to Development Minister Íñigo de la Serna. Expected to cost €1·2bn, the 62 km double-track alignment is to be designed for operation at up to 350 km/h. Under the Mediterranean Corridor programme, a ...
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NewsBi-mode trains in prospect as HS2 northern routes confirmed
UK: Transport Secretary Chris Grayling issued a Command Paper on July 17 confirming the planned routes for the northern sections of High Speed 2, which would link London and Birmingham with Leeds and Manchester, including connections to the existing East Coast and West Coast main lines.The ‘majority’ of the route ...
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NewsHigh speed infrastructure manager issues €600m dark green bond
SPAIN: High speed rail infrastructure manager ADIF Alta Velocidad has issued a €600m ‘green bond’ via a syndicate of banks BBVA, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole and Santander. The bond has a six-year term at a 0·8% rate of interest. Green bonds must be used to finance or refinance environmentally ...
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NewsHS1 concession sold on
UK: A consortium including South Korea’s National Pension Service has agreed a £3bn deal to purchase the 30-year concession to manage High Speed 1 from the two Canadian pension funds which have managed the line since November 2010. The concession covers the operation and maintenance of the 109 km rail ...
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NewsHS2 Phase 1 civil works preferred bidders named
UK: The preferred bidders for two-stage contracts to design and build the civil works including bridges, tunnels, embankments and viaducts for High Speed 2 Phase 1 from London Euston to Birmingham and a junction with the West Coast Main Line near Handsacre were announced on July 17. The contracts are ...
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NewsFS Group signs Iranian co-operation agreements
IRAN: Three co-operation agreements were signed in Tehran on July 11 by CEO of Italy’s national railway group FS Renato Mazzoncini and Islamic Republic of Iran Railways President Saeed Mohammadzadeh. The first agreement is potentially worth €1·2bn and covers the provision of design and construction services for the planned Qom ...
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NewsCRRC and Sinara sign rolling stock joint venture agreement
RUSSIA: The chairmen of Russia’s Sinara Group and China’s CRRC Changchun signed an agreement to establish the Sinara-CRRC Rail Transport rolling stock joint venture on July 4, in the presence of national presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping who was on a state visit to Russia. The agreement builds on ...
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NewsEurostar passengers to be able to watch virtual fish under the Channel
EUROPE: Cross-Channel high speed train operator Eurostar is to offer passengers an ‘immersive and unprecedented’ on-board virtual reality experience this summer. Primarily aimed at children and accessed through the on-train entertainment system using a smart device or via headsets which will be available onboard, Eurostar Odyssey will create a virtual ...
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NewsBaoji – Lanzhou opening completes high speed corridor to western China
CHINA: The 401 km high speed line between Baoji in Shaanxi province and Lanzhou in Gansu province opened on July 9, following a period of test running which had begun in May. The latest section of the national high speed network links the existing high speed line from eastern China ...
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NewsXRL trainset arrives in Hong Kong by rail
CHINA: The signalling and communications systems on the Hong Kong and Mainland sections of the Guangzhou – Shenzhen – Hong Kong Express Rail Link high speed line were connected on July 5, enabling the third of the nine trainsets for the future service to be delivered from CRRC Qingdao ...
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NewsJR East to build ALFA-X 360 km/h Shinkansen testbed
JAPAN: East Japan Railway has announced its intention build a further high speed test train, as part of a programme to develop its next generation of Shinkansen trains. JR East announced on July 4 that it expects to put the 10-car unit into operation in the spring of 2019. Dubbed ...
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NewsKuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed rail tender to be called this year
ASIA: Almost 400 participants from 165 supply, consultancy, finance and operating organisations attended an industry briefing organised by Kuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed line project promoters MyHSR Corp and Land Transport Authority on July 5. The event in Singapore was held to provide information and seek feedback on the ...