IRELAND: Iarnród Éireann has confirmed that battery problems on the bi-mode multiple-units being manufactured by Alstom as part of the DART+ investment programme will delay the introduction of the suburban trains around Dublin.
In December 2021, Iarnród Éireann awarded Alstom a 10-year framework agreement covering the supply and 15 years of maintenance of up to 750 vehicles for the DART+ suburuban rail investment and expansion programme. They are to be formed into five-car or 10-car sets and configured as either EMU or BEMU trainsets. The first trains were due to enter service in late 2026 on DART services on the northern commuter line to Drogheda under the first stage of DART+.
The first two sets of the 37-strong initial order have been delivered, and testing had been progressing well before the problem was identified during testing for a tram project in Australia.
Alstom has confirmed that a redesign of the battery will now be required, and it is working with the supplier to ensure modifications are delivered quickly.
Talking to Railway Gazette International, Iarnród Éireann’s Chief Mechanical Engineer Peter Smyth explained that ‘Alstom and the supplier have been very open and co-operative with us during the development of the battery system for DART and we meet regularly with both parties. The traction battery performance on trains one and two has been very good to date and has exceeded expectations during the test running across many thousands of kilometres.’
Smyth said that the redesign work would only affect ‘a small number of components within the battery pack’, and that the work would form part of the supplier’s efforts to create a common product platform for rail use.
‘The Version 2 battery pack will have to repeat the suite of approval tests before series production can begin and that has led to project delay’, Smyth added. Alstom sources remain hopeful that the later stages of the fleet introduction process can be rephased to ensure the overall timeline for whole fleet entering traffic can still be met.
