Bombardier Sifang (Qingdao) Transportation Ltd. won a contract with China Railway Corp. to supply 15 CRH380D “very high-speed trains” for that country’s high-speed network, an order it estimated at $381 million. The company, known as BST, is a joint venture with CSR Sifang Rolling Stock Co. Ltd., in operation since 1998, that designs and manufactures passenger cars, high-speed railcars, and urban rail mass transit vehicles.
The joint venture has delivered over 3,000 cars to rail systems in China, two-thirds of which have been for high-speed trains.
“China now has the world’s longest operational track mileage and the largest number of high-speed trains,” explained Jianwei Zhang, president of Bombardier China. “This market represents a tremendous opportunity where we have been successful by offering innovative and highly reliable products.”
Based on previous orders, has BST started delivering its latest high-speed train design, CRH380D, in Q1 2015. This follow-on order will comprise 15 eight-car train sets, each one with VIP seats, first- and second-class seats, and a dining car.
The CRH380D is a new design for high-speed electric multiple units developed by BST, and powered by Bombardier ECO4 technology with Bombardier MITRAC propulsion and control system, both supplied by another joint venture, Bombardier CPC Propulsion Systems.
The train sets will be manufactured by BST in Qingdao. Engineering will be done there, and at Bombardier centers in Europe. Component parts will be provided by operations in Europe and China.
