In the French media today and on railjournal.com:

'France’s industry minister Mr Christophe Sirugue told a meeting of union representatives and elected officials in Belfort on October 4 that the French government will fund an order for 15 TGV Euroduplex trains and 20 locomotives to save Alstom’s plant in the town from closure.

Sirugue also confirmed that French National Railways (SNCF) will also order a batch of six TGVs for Paris - Lyon - Turin services. Power cars for all 21 trains will be built at Belfort, securing the medium-term future of the plant, which employs 480 staff.'

Railcolor: it is not an order yet, but a plan. Last September, Alstom announced to close the Belfort site as a manufacturing location and to reform it as service point. 400 of the 480 employees would be re-assigned to another Alstom factory in France. However, president Mr François Hollande intervened and blocked the plan. Not only does he care about the factory and its workforce, Hollande is also facing elections next year and closing yet another factory is bad news for his campaign.

But if this new 'save Belfort' plan will be executed is to be seen. It depends on whether or not this governmental intervention is regarded as (illegal) state aid or not. Next to that, Alstom was not planning to stop locomotive production, nor firing people. It was slimming down its production capacity as its order portfolio was not as full as envisaged. Alstom was planning on moving its locomotive production to Reichshoffen, what will happen there when Belfort stays open? And of course there is the more general question, what is to become of Belfort on the long term? The possible new order will only bring work for around 1,5-2 years. To be continued.

Update: Lok-report.de brings a summary (scroll down) of what has been communicated in the French press yesterday. Additionally, Philippe Jacqué is answering questions from readers. The extra TGVs can be ordered directly from existing frame contracts. Curious is that some of the new TGVs will be used on conventional intercity lines.

Alstom will have to invest 40 million euro in Belfort, to be used for expanding it product portfolio (locomotives and electric busses), creating new jobs in the service department. 30 million euro will go into the 'development of new diesel or hybrid locomotives'.

After approval by the relevant authorities, Alstom will become the main shareholder in EKZ, KTZ and TMH both holding 25% of the joint venture based in Astana. With Alstom as major shareholder, EKZ scope will be extended to maintenance activities with the creation of a service centre.

“The agreement and the contract signed today show the sustainability of Alstom’s global strategy. By increasing Alstom’s share in EKZ, we show our confidence in the attractiveness of Kazakhstan investment environment and we contribute to the development of new expertise and skills locally to address not only Kazakhstan’s needs but also regional ones. This major maintenance contract confirms Alstom’s commitment to the modernisation of the rail industry and to the dynamism of Kazakhstan and central Asia with its rolling stock expertise and maintenance activities” said Martin Vaujour, Managing Director, Alstom Transport Central Asia.

Kazakhstan is an important hub linking Europe, Middle East, Asia and Russia through the new Silk Way. With almost 20,000 km of tracks, the Kazakh railway network is the world’s third biggest using the 1,520 mm track gauge. Besides wide and winterized rolling stock able to run in temperatures reaching -50°C, this market is characterised by very specific technical standards which require adapted engineering solutions. Alstom entered the Kazakhstan’s railway market in June 2010 together with its Russian partner Transmashholding, by laying the first stone of the EKZ facility.

The plant is working on supplying the electric locomotives ordered by KTZ by 2020[2]. Today, 24 KZ8A locomotives are already in operation on Kazakhstan’s rail lines, and the KZ4AT has passed its first dynamic tests at the speed of 200 km/h. Earlier this year, Azerbaijan Railways awarded a contract to EKZ to deliver 50 additional KZ8A locomotives to Azerbaijan.

The complete press statement.

Read the complete press statement here.

Alstom has been awarded a contract to supply 50 KZ8A freight locomotives to Azerbaijan Railways (ADDY) which will be assembled in Alstom’s JV EKZ between 2016 and 2018. The total amount of the contract is €300 million. Alstom’s share amounts to around €150 million.

The contract was signed in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku in the presence of the French President Francois Hollande and the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev. The contract may also include the construction of a depot, technical assistance and maintenance, as well as training for ADDY staff. These are subject to negotiation within the next six months.

KZ8A locomotives rank among the most powerful locomotives in the world (8,800 kW) with asynchronous traction, able to run at 120 km/h and to haul up to 9,000 tons. The KZ8A electric locomotives for this contract will be assembled in Alstom’s JV manufacturing site in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Top image: artist impression by Railcolor.net
Bottom image: KZ8A in the EKZ plant in Astana (KZ)