China Exports of HSR, Trains, Metro, Tram, Rolling Stocks, etc: News

[AViet]

The US has one thing Vietnam hasn't: dollar printing machine. We aren't rich to afford such expensive light rail, the Chinese are building now for Hanoi. Made in China is supposed to be cheap, isn't it? There are 7 more light rails to construct. If every rail costs so much, the Hanoier can't forget them.

I totally cannot understand your point. What is your alternative? Stop all railway projects? or go to Japanese or western, which are much more expensive. 7 - 10 times the Chinese price is possible. Look at the Japanese project in Ho Chi Minh. Now their price has been doubled, and this is possibly not the final price.

Made-in-China cheap and poor quality? Just cheap Western rhetoric, as they cannot compete. Germany starts to use Chinese-made parts for their ICE train. The US, Canada, Australia, Saudia Arabia, Brazil and hundred other countries use Chinese urban train and other trains. So all the world now are just cheap.

One more thing. Metro and elevated train are not "light train". They are urban train, and in most part of the world, using same standards like normal train, i.e. passenger train can run on the same rail.

 

[Viet]

I totally cannot understand your point. What is your alternative? Stop all railway projects? or go to Japanese or western, which are much more expensive. 7 - 10 times the Chinese price is possible. Look at the Japanese project in Ho Chi Minh. Now their price has been doubled, and this is possibly not the final price.

Made-in-China cheap and poor quality? Just cheap Western rhetoric, as they cannot compete. Germany starts to use Chinese-made parts for their ICE train. The US, Canada, Australia, Saudia Arabia, Brazil and hundred other countries use Chinese urban train and other trains. So all the world now are just cheap.

One more thing. Metro and elevated train are not "light train". They are urban train, and in most part of the world, using same standards like normal train, i.e. passenger train can run on the same rail.

I am not saying we stop any rail project. If we want a lower price, better quality and faster realization time, we must show our poker face on negotiation table, especially when dealing with the Chinese. They are too smart.

 

[GS Zhou]

oy, do you know 01km of subway in New York costs $2.4 billions, compared with $100 millions in Guangzhou.

The metro building cost in Guangzhou is actually lower than $100m / CNY 700m per km:
- Line 1: CNY 660m per km
- Line 2: CNY 485m per km
- Line 3: CNY 440m per km

One of the key reasons that Guangzhou could keep it at a low cost is that these lines are underground lines, i.e. the land clearance cost could be minimized. But for the light rail in Hanoi, which I believe is an above-the-ground line, land clearance cost therefore should be the main cost burden.

According to my knowledge, if cost of any infrastructure project is growing to be out of control, land clearance cost is the very likely reason behind. That's especially the case in a city with rapidly-growing real estate price.

 

[AViet]

I am not saying we stop any rail project. If we want a lower price, better quality and faster realization time, we must show our poker face on negotiation table, especially when dealing with the Chinese. They are too smart.

You must have something on the negotiation table, like your own expertise, technology, money, market size, political supports etc. as your strong points. Otherwise, even you are as smart as Einstein, you would still have no choice.

Regarding the speed of construction, as I live in Hanoi for most of the time and being a railway fan, I know quite well about both Nhon - Ga HN line and Cat Linh - Ha Dong line project progress.

The Nhon - Ga Hanoi line (13km, 4km underground), sponsored by the French, had a big first ground breaking ceremony in 2005. There was so much on the media about the first metro line of Hanoi. After that, nothing happened until 2010. in 2010, they organized the second ground breaking ceremony (at that time, perhaps most people had forgotten about the project, but not myself). After that, nothing happened on site until around 2013 or 2014, when real construction started on site. Now, perhaps 20 - 30% construction work have been completed, I guess.

in the meantime, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong line (13 km, all elevated), sponsored by the Chinese, started around 2008 or 2009, had no ground breaking ceremony. Therefore, most Hanoians did not know about this project, no media talked about it, until it is really built on site. They just do it. The delay was mostly due to difficulties in land clearance, not about the construction work. The project will start commissioning in this September.

 

[Viet]

You must have something on the negotiation table, like your own expertise, technology, money, market size, political supports etc. as your strong points. Otherwise, even you are as smart as Einstein, you would still have no choice.

Regarding the speed of construction, as I live in Hanoi for most of the time and being a railway fan, I know quite well about both Nhon - Ga HN line and Cat Linh - Ha Dong line project progress.

The Nhon - Ga Hanoi line (13km, 4km underground), sponsored by the French, had a big first ground breaking ceremony in 2005. There was so much on the media about the first metro line of Hanoi. After that, nothing happened until 2010. in 2010, they organized the second ground breaking ceremony (at that time, perhaps most people had forgotten about the project, but not myself). After that, nothing happened on site until around 2013 or 2014, when real construction started on site. Now, perhaps 20 - 30% construction work have been completed, I guess.

in the meantime, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong line (13 km, all elevated), sponsored by the Chinese, started around 2008 or 2009, had no ground breaking ceremony. Therefore, most Hanoians did not know about this project, no media talked about it, until it is really built on site. They just do it. The delay was mostly due to difficulties in land clearance, not about the construction work. The project will start commissioning in this September.

Vietnam biggest enemy is incompetence. I smash my head against the wall when seeing how slow things take off in our country.

 

[GS Zhou]

The Nhon - Ga Hanoi line (13km, 4km underground), sponsored by the French, had a big first ground breaking ceremony in 2005. There was so much on the media about the first metro line of Hanoi. After that, nothing happened until 2010. in 2010, they organized the second ground breaking ceremony (at that time, perhaps most people had forgotten about the project, but not myself). After that, nothing happened on site until around 2013 or 2014, when real construction started on site. Now, perhaps 20 - 30% construction work have been completed, I guess.

You mean this project has been delayed by almost 10years?? Considering the real estate price growth in Hanoi during the period, the land clearance cost increment alone could be a total disaster to budget control!!

 

[dingyibvs]

You guys realize that this is $900m for 13kms, or about $70m per km, right? It is indeed quite cheap (or affordable, whatever you wanna call it) compared to those done in Western countries, particularly a very expensive city like NYC.

 

[TaiShang]

CRRC goes full steam ahead abroad
China Daily, March 17, 2017

Models display CRRC trains at an industry expo in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. [Photo/Xinhua]

Train and rail equipment manufacturer China Railway Rolling Stock Corp made a major breakthrough in export volumes, quality, sales models, business cooperation and integration in overseas markets in 2016, according to one of its top executives.

The company said the total value of orders from abroad surged by 40 percent year-on-year to $8.1 billion in 2016. It added that exports reached 102 countries and regions and about 83 percent of countries with railroads are using CRRC products.

"In terms of sales, our orders received in 2016 were the equivalent of the total sales of Siemens AG or Bombardier Inc's railway businesses in 2015," said Yu Weiping, CRRC's vice-president.

Yu said his company would further develop "smart trains" which use advanced digitalization and automation technologies that enable automatic speed controls and fault detection.

CRRC's main businesses cover research and development, design, manufacture, repairs, sale, leasing and technical services for rolling stock.

It is also involved with urban rail transit vehicles, engineering machinery, all types of electrical equipment, electronic equipment and parts, electric products and environmental protection equipment and consulting services.

CRRC last year also pressed ahead with its goals to gain in quality and market share in such premium markets as the United States and Europe.

It shipped bullet train units to Macedonia and received an order of 846 rail cars from the Chicago Transit Authority in 2016.

Beijing-based CRRC signed a 14 billion yuan ($2.03 billion) maintenance contract with South Africa－the biggest one it ever signed－further advancing its strategy to export its services to global markets.

The company also expanded moves into businesses in Australia, the US, South Africa, India, Turkey and Europe through building research centers, factories and joint ventures.

"Chinese trainmakers could also find growth in many developing countries and regions along the Belt and Road Initiative－for improved railway infrastructure, passenger services and regional connectivity, as well as their desire to create jobs and new commercial areas," said Qi Shaobin, a researcher at the Institute of Transportation Research under the National Development and Reform Commission.

Eager to further compete with its Japanese and German rivals, CRRC has already started research and development of a magnetic levitation or maglev train that can reach 600 km per hour.

The group will build a maglev rail line up to 5 kilometers long to test the train.

The project will be led by CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co Ltd in Shandong province, one of the country's three bullet train makers.

 

[艹艹艹]

Iran, China ink MoU on construction of subway wagons

• 16 Mar 2017

The countries have inked MoU on construction of 215 subway wagons
16 March 2017

Tehran – Iran and China have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on construction of 215 subway wagons, a senior official in charge of municipalities and rural management affairs announced on Wednesday.

Hossein-Rajab Salahi, director general of the railway transportation office at municipalities and rural management organization, told IRNA that the construction will begin in Iran.

The wagons, Salahi said, will be used for three capital cities of Isfahan, Fars and East Azarbaijan provinces.

As the official said, the contract has been signed between Iranian Rail Industries Development Company (IRICO) and China’s CRRC Nanjing Puzhen Rail Transport Co. which is among the biggest wagon manufacturers in the world.

The today MoU has been signed within the framework of the Dec 2008 agreement on supply of 315 subway wagons between the Interior Ministry and CRRC Nanjing Puzhen, Salahi said, adding 100 of those wagons constructed in China have already been delivered to the country.

The implementation of MoU on the wagon construction will improve the industry in the country and create further job opportunities, the official concluded.

© IRNA 2017


http://projects.zawya.com/Iran_Chin...n_of_subway_wagons/story/ZAWYA20170316070803/

 

[cirr]

Israeli Bus Makers to Go Electric

By Dror Halavy

Friday, March 17, 2017 at 3:41 am | י"ט אדר תשע"ז


Egged buses. (Wikipedia/Math Knight)

YERUSHALAYIM - Two Israeli bus makers have won a tender to produce electric buses for the local market. The companies will work with Chinese bus manufacturers to produce the buses based on frames supplied by Chinese companies. The deal to produce a total of 150 buses is worth NIS 55 million.

Once, Israeli buses were made, or at least finished, in Israel – but like with so many other manufactured products, it’s cheaper to import buses from China. As a result, Israeli firms Ha’argaz and Merkavim, which produced locally built buses on imported manufactured steel parts from Europe, have seen their business diminish by half in recent years. It turns out that it is 20- to 30-percent cheaper to import ready-made buses from China than it is to build the buses in Israel of parts and engines manufactured in Europe.

As a result, Chinese products have over the past decade become a major presence in the Israeli bus market, with 45 percent of all buses that took to the road in 2016 made in China. A total of 1,000 buses were introduced in 2016, double the number in 2015 – with the increase attributed to the fact that bus companies can afford to buy more buses because they are cheaper.

The growth in the import of buses has come at the expense of the Israeli companies, which have been around since the early days of the state, and once built all the buses used by the Dan and Egged bus companies. With the new deal, industry officials said, the two companies will see their fortunes rise again. A total of 150 buses will be built under the deal, with Egged getting 92 of them, and the rest going to several small bus companies.

Meanwhile, the Transport Ministry last week authorized Egged to import 170 new conventional buses, to be made in China. The deal with China Motors is worth NIS 116 million, a cost of NIS 680,000 per bus.

http://hamodia.com/2017/03/17/israeli-bus-makers-to-go-electric/

 

[cirr]

Springfield CRRC plant gets $137.5M Philly train car job

By Jim Kinney | jkinney@repub.com

On March 23, 2017 at 9:05 PM, updated March 23, 2017 at 9:07 PM

SPRINGFIELD -- The CRRC plant now under construction in East Springfield was awarded a deal Thursday to build 45 train cars for SEPTA, Philadelphia's transit system, for $137.5 million.

The deal includes an option for SEPTA to buy 10 more cars for another $23.5 million, according to a report on Philly.com, the online home of the Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News.

The cars are expected to arrive in Philadelphia in 2019. They'll be double-deckers, adding about 6,000 seats to SEPTA's busiest commuter rail lines.



Springfield factory on track to supply nation's rail cars

The Chinese-owned company will make subway cars for Boston, and potentially Los Angeles, at a plant in East Springfield.

The Philadelphia deal, along with a Los Angeles order announced in December, is another sign that CRRC is accomplishing its goal of creating a rail car industry in Springfield by filling needs beyond the MBTA contracts that caused it to be built.

An arm of the Chinese state railways, CRRC built its factory here to fulfill a $566 million contract it received in 2014 from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to manufacture 284 cars for the Red and Orange lines on Greater Boston's subway system. Those cars are expected to start production next year.



First CRRC employees ready to go to China for training on subway rail cars

The massive CRRC rail car factory in East Springfield will be completed in a few months.

Subsequently, the MBTA awarded CRRC a $277 million contract to build an additional 120 Red Line cars starting in 2022. This most recent MBTA deal includes an option to purchase 14 more cars.

The Los Angels deal is for $178.4 million to purchase 64 new subway cars for the Metro Red Line and Purple Line.



CRRC Springfield has deal to build subway cars for LA

The $95 million Chinese rail car factory under construction at the former Westinghouse site in East Springfield that will build subway cars for Boston's MBTA will be done in 2017.

CRRC executives have said officials from Atlanta's MARTA transit system have already toured the Springfield factory.

CRRC is has also proposed a factory in Fort Edward, New York, near Saratoga Springs, that would make transit cars for New York City.

Massachusetts went without federal funding on its initial Red and Orange line orders so it could require that the cars be assembled somewhere in the commonwealth. That touched off competition among companies building plants and cities that wanted to host those plants. Springfield won.

The first group of CRRC workers leaves for China and training at CRRC's facilities there early in April.

All told, CRRC expects to have more than 150 production workers in Springfield. CRRC said production jobs will pay $55,000 to $60,000 a year.

http://www.masslive.com/business-ne...ringfield_crrc_plant_gets_1375m_philly_1.html

 

[cirr]

Chinese firms help to update Tehran subway

March 23, 2017


Chinese state-owned train makers announced two separate deals to supply subway cars to Iran, which is trying to bolster one of the largest urban rail systems in the Middle East.

The military-affiliated Norinco International disclosed a 93 million euro ($100 million) contract to manufacture 70 subway cars for the Tehran Metro, according to a statement released to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Monday.

Cars will be sold to Tehran Wagon Manufacturing Co., a joint venture formed between Norinco, with a 29% stake, together with Tehran’s official subway operator, and a division of China’s top train manufacturer CRRC Corp. Ltd.

Norinco’s parent is a military-owned trade company that develops and exports defense equipment and technology, and has been helping Iran to build a mass transit system for years under a previous arrangement, according to earlier reports.

In 2015, the joint venture inked a 9 billion yuan ($1.3 billion) deal to supply about 1,000 subway cars for the Tehran Metro. The joint venture also holds a contract to construct the Tehran Metro Line Six, which is expected to be completed this year, for $1.2 billion.

In a separate deal, also in Tehran, the Nanjing Puzhen branch of CRRC said it has updated an agreement with an Iranian train operator, stating that 200 remaining subway cars in an order for 315 will be produced locally, in Iran, instead of China, according to an announcement on Monday.

“This will enhance Iran’s industrialization level and create job opportunities,” said Hossein-Rajab Salahi, director of Iran’s railway transportation office.

China has spent trillions of yuan over the last decade building up state-of-the-art subway and high-speed rail systems throughout the country, providing greater mobility within and between cities as part of its transition from a planned to a free-market economy. Following that buildup, companies like Norinco and CRRC have been energetically marketing their rail expertise across the globe as part of a Beijing policy that encourages exports of homegrown technology.

Earlier this month, CRRC began construction on a rail car factory in Chicago, a year after securing a $1.3 billion contract to supply cars to the Chicago Transit Authority. That followed another international deal in January, when CRRC won a $277 million order from Boston’s subway operator.

http://www.tehrantimes.com/news/412131/Chinese-firms-help-to-update-Tehran-subway

 

[AndrewJin]

Springfield CRRC plant gets $137.5M Philly train car job

By Jim Kinney | jkinney@repub.com

On March 23, 2017 at 9:05 PM, updated March 23, 2017 at 9:07 PM

SPRINGFIELD -- The CRRC plant now under construction in East Springfield was awarded a deal Thursday to build 45 train cars for SEPTA, Philadelphia's transit system, for $137.5 million.

The deal includes an option for SEPTA to buy 10 more cars for another $23.5 million, according to a report on Philly.com, the online home of the Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News.

The cars are expected to arrive in Philadelphia in 2019. They'll be double-deckers, adding about 6,000 seats to SEPTA's busiest commuter rail lines.



Springfield factory on track to supply nation's rail cars

The Chinese-owned company will make subway cars for Boston, and potentially Los Angeles, at a plant in East Springfield.

The Philadelphia deal, along with a Los Angeles order announced in December, is another sign that CRRC is accomplishing its goal of creating a rail car industry in Springfield by filling needs beyond the MBTA contracts that caused it to be built.

An arm of the Chinese state railways, CRRC built its factory here to fulfill a $566 million contract it received in 2014 from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to manufacture 284 cars for the Red and Orange lines on Greater Boston's subway system. Those cars are expected to start production next year.



First CRRC employees ready to go to China for training on subway rail cars

The massive CRRC rail car factory in East Springfield will be completed in a few months.

Subsequently, the MBTA awarded CRRC a $277 million contract to build an additional 120 Red Line cars starting in 2022. This most recent MBTA deal includes an option to purchase 14 more cars.

The Los Angels deal is for $178.4 million to purchase 64 new subway cars for the Metro Red Line and Purple Line.



CRRC Springfield has deal to build subway cars for LA

The $95 million Chinese rail car factory under construction at the former Westinghouse site in East Springfield that will build subway cars for Boston's MBTA will be done in 2017.

CRRC executives have said officials from Atlanta's MARTA transit system have already toured the Springfield factory.

CRRC is has also proposed a factory in Fort Edward, New York, near Saratoga Springs, that would make transit cars for New York City.

Massachusetts went without federal funding on its initial Red and Orange line orders so it could require that the cars be assembled somewhere in the commonwealth. That touched off competition among companies building plants and cities that wanted to host those plants. Springfield won.

The first group of CRRC workers leaves for China and training at CRRC's facilities there early in April.

All told, CRRC expects to have more than 150 production workers in Springfield. CRRC said production jobs will pay $55,000 to $60,000 a year.

http://www.masslive.com/business-ne...ringfield_crrc_plant_gets_1375m_philly_1.html

wow, more orders!!!

 

[TaiShang]

wow, more orders!!!

Make America great again by making China the greatest...



CRRC unit wins railcar bid in US
China Daily, March 25, 2017

Train and rail equipment manufacturer China Railway Rolling Stock Corp is on a roll when it comes to securing railcar contracts in the United States.

In Philadelphia, the board of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority on Thursday approved the purchase of 45 multilevel coaches from the Chinese train giant's subsidiary, CRRC MA, for its regional rail network.

The contract award was based on technical ratings and pricing, said the authority, with CRRC's proposal offering the best value. The multilevel coaches will meet "Buy America" requirements, with 60 percent or more of the parts, labor and fabrication done in the US.

"This contract award allows SEPTA to advance a major service-improvement initiative at a cost that fits within our budget constraints," Chairman Pasquale T. Deon Senior said in a statement.

"We look forward to seeing the new multilevel coaches in service for our customers."

General Manager Jeffrey Knueppel said the regional rail's passenger levels had grown by more than 50 percent over the last 15 years.

"The addition of new multilevel coaches and electric locomotives are critical for expanding capacity and meeting the needs of our riders," he said.

He added that the fleet upgrades would play a key role in advancing the authority's regional rail service improvement program.

CRRC MA came in with a low bid of $137.5 million, easily besting competitors Bombardier of Canada, which bid $171.5 million and the $187.8 million bid by Hyundai Rotem of South Korea.

CRRC MA's deal includes an option for 10 more cars, which, if exercised, would result in the contract's value rising to $161 million, still below the base bids by Bombardier and Hyundai Rotem.

The first of the coaches are expected to be delivered in late 2019. They will be paired with SEPTA's new electric locomotives, which are being built by Siemens of Germany.

The multilevel coaches will be produced primarily at CRRC MA's main US manufacturing facility in Springfield, Massachusetts.

It is the latest win for CRRC. Last week, CRRC Sifang America broke ground in Chicago for a $100 million plant that will build railcars for the city's transit authority.

In 2015, construction began on the $95 million plant in Massachusetts to build rail cars for Boston's transit authority. That plant is scheduled for completion this year and the first cars are expected to be delivered to Boston in 2018.

CRRC was formed in 2015 by the merger of China's top two high-speed rail makers China North Railway and China South Railway.

CRRC has also expanded moves into rail equipment and maintenance businesses in Australia, South Africa, India, Turkey and Europe through building research centers, factories and joint ventures.

Eager to compete with its European and Japanese rivals in this field, China will further develop smart trains which use advanced digitalization and automation technologies that enable automatic speed controls and fault detection, said Feng Hao, a rail transportation researcher at the National Development and Reform Commission.

 

[onebyone]

Chinese company building new MBTA trains keeps on rolling

DAVE ROBACK/THE REPUBLICAN

China Railroad Rolling Stock Corp. is building a $95 million factory in Springfield.

By Adam Vaccaro GLOBE STAFF MARCH 24, 2017

The MBTA isn’t the only transit agency whose new trains will be made in Massachusetts.

Officials with Philadelphia’s transit system this week awarded a $137.5 million contract for 45 new commuter rail trains to China Railroad Rolling Stock Corp., the Chinese government-owned rail firm that is building new subway trains for the T at a Springfield factory.
That follows CRRC’s win in December of the bidding to build new subway cars for Los Angeles’s transit system. Assembly work for both jobs will be done in Springfield.

CRRC is a massive company formed by the merger of two Chinese rail manufacturers, with operations around the world. But until the fall of 2014, when it was contracted for $566 million to build new Red and Orange line trains for the MBTA, it had not done any business in North America.

The company underbid other competitors for the MBTA contract by hundreds of millions of dollars, and as part of the arrangement agreed to build the $95 million Springfield factory that is expected to employ 150.

That deal has become a springboard for CRRC to pick up business across the country. In addition to the Philadelphia and Los Angels jobs, it will also build new trains for Chicago — though those will be made in a new Illinois factory. Last year, it secured another contract worth $277 million with the MBTA to expand its work to include the entire Red Line fleet.

DON TREEGER/THE REPUBLICAN

Manufacturing engineer Ted Gurski walked through the Springfield facility.


Its US expansion has not been without controversy. When the Patrick administration selected the company for the MBTA job, opponents decried the human rights record of its owner, the Chinese government.
CRRC has also been criticized for undercutting prices by its competitors and some members of Congress, who last summer in a letter to the US Treasury accused the company of using the Chinese government to subsidize its prices. CRRC has been the low bidder in all four of the US cities where it has won contracts. Lydia Rivera, a spokeswoman for CRRC, said the company offers low prices because of its global footprint and existing supply chains.

The growth is good news to Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno. The factory broke ground in 2015 and is expected to begin delivering vehicles for the MBTA next year. Generating business from other transit agencies was always part of the plan, Sarno said.

“This does not surprise me at all,” Sarno said. “I’m confident that they’re going to be receiving even more contracts.”

Sarno speculated that the factory could be in line for more work if the federal government advances a stated goal of President Trump.

“They’ll continue to get orders,” he said. “The new administration, they want to do a massive infrastructure plan. . . . It comes at an opportune time.”

In April, about 30 employees at the Springfield factory will travel to China for three months for orientation and training. The new MBTA vehicles are expected to begin assembly next year.



Adam Vaccaro can be reached at adam.vaccaro@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamtvaccaro.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/business...ng/kUA20c35ah9K8pdyY2y6cI/story.html#comments