Delivery of 1st batch of Transmashholding railcars delayed to March

CAIRO - 21 December 2019: Sources in the Ministry of Transportation told Egypt Today that the delivery of the first batch of Russian railcars contracted for with Transmashholding got delayed to March instead of the end of this year as the loan procedures have been finished a few days ago.

Nevertheless, the number of railcars in the first batch doubled to become 60 including the model railcar that was tested on Egyptian railways. Also, the total number of railcars delivered by June has to be 180.

In July, ERA endorsed the technical specifications of two passenger railcars that were supposed to be supplied by Transmashholding in September. Those are part of a contract to supply 1,300 railcars. One of the railcars would be tested in Hungary, so it would be granted the safety certification by the European Railway Agency. The other was tested in Egypt.

The contract states that 650 railcars will be supplied from Hungary, 500 will be delivered by Russia, and 150 will be manufactured by Egypt under the supervision of Transmashholding. An Egyptian locomotive factory will be established as part of a plan to localize the locomotive industry in Egypt and transfer the know-how to workers, technicians, and engineers in the sector. The factory will produce 150 railcars and also provide maintenance services.

The contract is funded by a soft loan worth €1.02 billion granted by Hungarian Export-Import Bank (EXIM) and State Specialized Russian Export- Import Bank (Eximbank of Russia). The 1,300 railcars shall be delivered over batches within 40 months by the end of 2021 once the loan procedures are finalized.

The contract consists of 500 third-class air-conditioned railcars, 180 second-class air-conditioned railcars, 90 first-class air-conditioned railcars, 500 third-class dynamic-ventilation railcars, and 30 air-conditioned cabooses.