SLOVAKIA: National operator ŽSSK has ordered a further five four-car RegioPanter electric multiple-units from a consortium of Škoda Group and ŽOS Trnava.
The order announced on December 30 is the first which the Ministry of Transport & Construction has financed with funding from the national Recovery & Resilience Plan. It has been placed under a September 2021 agreement covering a firm order for nine EMUs and options for a further 11.
ŽSSK plans to deploy the EMUs in the Košice and Prešov regions; the five in the latest order will be delivered from 2025 and primarily used on the Čierna nad Tisou – Slovenské Nové Mesto – Košice – Prešov route.
The 160 km/h dual-system EMUs will be equipped to use 3 kV DC and 25 kV 50 Hz electrification. They will have 343 seats, with air-conditioning, power sockets, wi-fi, audiovisual passenger information, LED lighting and multifunction areas for wheelchair users, prams and bicycles.
‘The Slovak railway is modernising significantly, and we are very happy to be part of it’, said Tomáš Ignačák, President of Czech and Slovak Region at Škoda Group. ‘It is very important to highlight the excellent co-operation with ŽOS Trnava, with whom we are also developing co-operation on other projects outside Slovakia.
