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AB TRANSITIO AWARDS CAF CONTRACT TO SUPPLY UNITS THAT WILL OPERATE IN SEVERAL SWEDEN REGIONS
AB Transitio has awarded CAF a contract to supply regional trains under the terms of the framework agreement signed in 2014 by the Swedish public company relative to regional train purchases. The base contract comprises the production of 20 EMUs (electric units), 4 cars each, and 8 BMUs (biodiesel-electric bimodal units) consisting of 3 cars plus a power car. The contract provides for additional options that could increase the number of units by an additional 19 EMUs and 7 BMUs. The base contract amounts to more than €250 million, a figure that would almost double should all the additional vehicle options included in the contract be executed. The first units are scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2023.
The CAF-designed trains belong to the Civity Nordic platform, designed to operate in extreme weather conditions (from -40ºC to +40ºC). They are intended for operation in four regions of Sweden, specifically in Jönköping County, Kalmar County, Kronoberg and Blekinge. Initially, the new trains will run on the Krösatågen and Kustpilen lines, and for the latter an electrification project is under way, which is the reason underlying the decision to purchase bimodal BMUs.
Transitio AB will be the contracting party and owner of the trains and then will lease the trains out to the four aforementioned regions in Sweden. Each region is a regional public transport authority, whereby each region is politically and financially responsible for public transport.
These units have been purchased for two main reasons: firstly, to meet the growing need to extend services on these lines over the coming years, and secondly, to replace the fleet that is currently in service (EMUs and DMUs) to improve both service quality and the environmental impact of public rail transport through the use of biodiesel, which is a 100% renewable fuel.
Regional rail transport plays a key role in regional and inter-regional transport in this Nordic country, with this project creating new economic development opportunities in these regions, as well as contributing towards increasing their appeal as a destination. As an example, these new units will run through the city of Vimmerby, where a popular tourist destination in Sweden can be found: Astrid Lindgren's World theme park, home to the iconic Pippi Longstocking.
The caf group is committed to growth in nordic countries
We should point out that 2019 saw the CAF Group take over the Swedish company EuroMaint - train maintenance sector leader in its country - thereby consolidating its foothold in Nordic countries. EuroMaint has been a benchmark company in the Nordic railway market for many years, with a significant market share in the train fleet maintenance sector, an activity the company combines with the supply of railway components for operators in the region.
Boasting a workforce of almost 1,000 people, aside from contributing it’s backlog to the CAF Group as well as a considerable number of customers in this market, it has also consolidated CAF's foothold in the area and will promote opportunities to execute new projects in the Scandinavian region, a market where a significant number of tenders are expected to be announced over the next few years.
Over the past few years, CAF's operations in this region have given rise to a number of projects, ranging from the supply of high speed units for Norway, to the production of metro units for Helsinki, as well as the commissioning of tram fleets in the Swedish cities of Stockholm and Lund, or in Oslo, the capital city of its neighbouring country, Norway.
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