EIB to Fund Train Procurement for Romania

The rolling stock procurement program in Romania is set to receive €470 million from the European Investment Bank (EIB), as announced by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure and the Railway Reform Office (ARF), this is reported by the railway transport news portal, Railway Supply.

This new investment will be used to acquire 62 electric trains with the aim of enhancing the appeal of rail transport and reducing CO2 emissions by 12,014.7 tons annually, which is 29.2% less each year.

Kazakhstan has banned the transit of wood-based products from Russia due to sanctions

According to the EIB’s decision, Romania’s Railway Reform Office will initiate the preparation of the investment project and the train procurement process, expected to commence in the first quarter of 2024.

The new electric trains will be deployed on eleven railway routes, with a strong focus on connections with Romania’s capital, Bucharest.

In September, Pesa Bydgoszcz was chosen to supply 20 EMUs for medium and long-distance services, including a 15-year maintenance service.

These new trains will operate on seven electrified railway routes, with additional routes coming after the completion of construction and electrification on the Cluj-Napoca – Oradea and Craiova – Calafat main lines.

CRRC has showcased a video of the high-speed maglev train cabin

In March 2022, another railway contract was signed with Alstom, covering the delivery of 37 electric trains, including an option for 17 additional interregional EMUs, which was exercised in September 2022.

For this contract, Romania received €52 million in co-financing from the European Commission through the Cohesion Fund.

It is expected that on November 25, 2023, Alstom will deliver the first train out of the 37 electric motor cars to Romania, with an anticipated arrival in Bucharest between December 2-3, 2023.

After Alstom delivers the trains, they will be put into commercial service on the main electrified lines of the Romanian rail network.

Rail business, industry, and railway technology news from Railway Supply that you might have missed:

In Melitopol, Ukrainian partisans exploded a train of Russian occupiers