Renfe has signed with Alstom and Stadler the EUR 2.44 billion contracts for the supply of a total fleet of 211 high-capacity trains following the announcement made in March 2021.
The Spanish rail operator has signed the EUR 1.44 billion contract with Alstom for the delivery of 152 high-capacity trains for Cercanías, including the supply of spare parts, maintenance services and equipment for 15 years. The trains will be 100 metre-long and will have a capacity of 900 seats each, a 20% increase than the current Civia train fleet. In addition, they will minimise the time of getting off and on for passengers, through an advanced design with minimum 10 doors and large lobbies. They will operate on the rail network of large suburban centres.
Alstom trains for Renfe will be fully accessible to facilitate the travel of people with reduced mobility, and will have Wi-Fi connection and areas for bicycles and children’s strollers.
The contract represents a guarantee of workload for the coming years with an estimated double workforce, generating more than 500 qualified jobs and twice as many indirect ones. The agreement with Alstom will also deliver investments in new facilities such as welding workshops, paint booths, warehouses and dynamic test tracks, as well as the development of a new centre of excellence dedicated to 3D printing. It will also strengthen a rail hub in Catalonia, with the Alstom’s Santa Perpètua plant, in Barcelona as a benchmark for digitalisation and development of the latest technologies and processes to design and build the trains. Currently, more than 80% of the Alstom Spain suppliers are local companies.
With Stadler, Renfe signed a EUR 998 million contract for the delivery of 59 high-capacity for commuter services. The Iberian-gauge trains will operate on 3 kV DC overhead lines reaching a maximum speed of 140 km/h. They will provide the transport services in the largest Spanish cities. It is the first time when Stadler will develop and build the trains for Renfe at its plant in Valencia.
The contracts are part of Renfe’s fleet renewal programme started in 2019 with the aim of guaranteeing the quality and improvement of public services in the coming years, and which will involve the renewal of 50% of the suburban, medium and long distance trains. In this context, Renfe intends to reduce the average age of the Cercanías trains and regional train fleet which on average are 30 years old and represent 80% of operator’s public transport service. The company is making the largest investment effort in recent decades for rolling stock procurement to boost the economic recovery. The EUR 3.5 billion tenders will generate around 52,000 new jobs.
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