Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS), the Dutch national railway operator, has begun a tendering process with a request for information from industry for EMU fleet procurement. NS intends to purchase a new generation of single and double decker EMUs.
It is expected that in 2022 the contract will be signed and the first units to enter services in 2027.
The new EMU fleet, which will replace the DDZ trains, should combine the need for high capacity and improved accessibility trains.
NS intends to acquire a train fleet consisting of a combination of single and double-decker carriages that is suitable for speeds of up to 160 km/h. The basic order concerns about 30,000 seats with various options for additional orders and also an option for ordering similar trains for cross-border train traffic. According to the transport concession for the main rail network, NS has an obligation to provide sufficient train fleet to execute the concession until 2025, in addition, it must ensure continuity even after this concession period.
The procurement comes as the National Market and Capacity Analysis (NMCA) forecasts that in the coming years the number of passengers will significantly grow.
“We must now look to the future, when more and more passengers will choose train services. The older DDZ double-decker trains are approaching the end of their service life and they need to be replaced. Although we currently have significantly fewer travelers due to coronavirus measures, we are prepared for growth in the long term. Because the purchase of a new train is a process of about 7 years, NS chooses to start the tender today,” said Roel Okhuijsen, the NS Rolling Stock Director.
In the recent years, EUR 3.8 billion has been invested by the NS to renew its rolling stock fleet. Alstom is currently delivering 99 extra-fast Intercity trains partly destined for the high-speed line. The first trains are expected to be on the track in 2021. In 2016, Alstom and NS signed a EUR 800 million contract for the delivery of 79 Coradia Stream trains in their intercity version. Alstom will supply an 8-car as well as a 5-car version. The trains, which will run with a maximum speed of 200 km/h will have a total passenger capacity of the fleet of 25,000 seats. They will run on the Dutch national network on the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Breda high-speed line in 2021 and on the Den Haag-Eindhoven corridor in 2022.
Another train contract was signed with CAF for the supply of 206 new Sprinters, with the first 100 already in operation. Recently, the two companies signed a EUR 400 million contract extension for the delivery of 302 additional Civity platform passenger cars formed by 50 three-car and 38 four-car trains.
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