Spanish train manufacturer CAF has won a €250 million order from Spanish national train operator RENFE for the supply of 37 metre-gauge trains.
The 37 trains will make up two fleets. One fleet of 31 trains (with an option for a further seven) will run on the RENFE metre-gauge lines that were previously managed by FEVE, improving rail services in Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León and the Basque Country.
26 of these trains will be all-electric while the other five will be bi-modes (batteries or hydrogen) so they can run on non-electrified lines. However, all 31 trains will be able to be converted to bi-mode in the future if needed.
The second fleet of six trains will replace the entire existing fleet serving the Cercedilla-Cotos line in the Madrid mountains, vehicles that have been running for over 40 years.
Maintenance for the next 15 years of 12 trains in the RENFE FEVE fleet and all six trains in the Cercedilla-Cotos fleet is included in the contract.
RENFE is currently undertaking an ambitious investment programme to replace a significant proportion of its train fleet, at an estimated cost of around €5 billion.
GLOSSARY:
CAF (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles – Construction & Other Railway Services) – Spanish manufacturer of trains and signalling equipment headquartered in Beasain, in the Basque region of northern Spain.
RENFE (Red Nacional de los Ferrocarriles Españoles – National Network of Spanish Railways) – Spanish national train operator.
FEVE (Ferrocarriles de Vía Estrecha – Narrow-Gauge Railways) – metre-gauge railway operator, formerly independent, now part of RENFE (RENFE FEVE).
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