GE wins $2.6 Billion contract to build 1000 locos for India

[MEC407]

GE press release:

GE to supply 1,000 locomotives to Indian Railways

· $2.6 billion contract for GE over 11 years

· GE will invest $200 million to build local manufacturing and service facilities

New York, New Delhi, November 9, 2015 GE announced today it will invest $200 million to develop and supply Indian Railways with 1,000 diesel locomotives. The company received a Letter of Award from the Ministry of Railways for a locomotive supply and maintenance contract, worth approximately $2.6 billion over 11 years. The deal advances the ‘Make in India’ initiative and reinforces India’s position as a global manufacturing destination.

The largest deal in GE’s 100-year history in India, the company will build a diesel locomotive manufacturing facility in Marhowra district in the Indian state of Bihar, as well as maintenance sheds at Bhatinda in Punjab and Gandhidham in Gujarat. This effort is a major boost to India’s railway modernization efforts, and will provide skill development opportunities for local talent.

“This infrastructure project is further evidence of India’s position as a growth engine for Asia,” said GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt. “It is a major advancement and milestone for India and for GE, and a symbol of our commitment and support of the ‘Make in India’ initiative.”

Last year, the Government of India allowed 100 percent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the railway sector. The Marhowra diesel locomotive project marks one of the first major instances of FDI in enhancing India’s rail locomotive capacity.

“This project combines GE’s deep infrastructure and manufacturing expertise with India’s growth priorities. This is an exciting and integral part of our localization strategy in India,” said Jamie Miller, GE Transportation Chief Executive Officer. “We are excited about working with Indian Railways and continuing to invest in the region.”

The Letter of Award confirms GE as the selected bidder, following a competitive bidding process, for the project to develop a diesel locomotive manufacturing facility and deliver 1,000 diesel locomotives. GE will sign an agreement to formalize the contract and establish a joint venture with Indian Railways before breaking ground to construct the facility.


About GE

GE (NYSE: GE) is the world’s Digital Industrial Company, transforming industry with software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive. GE is organized around a global exchange of knowledge, the "GE Store," through which each business shares and accesses the same technology, markets, structure and intellect. Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors. With people, services, technology and scale, GE delivers better outcomes for customers by speaking the language of industry. http://www.ge.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Media Contact
Clarissa Beyah-Taylor
GE Transportation
[email protected]
312- 416- 7662

Source: http://www.genewsroom.com/press-release ... ays-282276" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[MEC407]

From Railway Gazette:

Plans for the factory were first announced by the government in 2006. Following an international tender, requests for proposals were issued to two shortlisted bidders on March 11 2015. The PPP contract still needs to be formalised and a joint venture between the Ministry of Railways (with a 26% stake) and GE Global Sourcing India established before construction begins. The land has already been acquired by Indian Railways, and the factory is expected to be completed within three years.

The plant would produce 4 500 hp and 6 000 hp diesel-electric freight locomotives with GE Evolution engines, with the first scheduled to be delivered in January 2018. The contract will allow the first 100 locomotives to be imported or assembled using imported kits, but the rest must be built in India with mostly Indian content.

Read the rest of the article at: http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/busi ... -deal.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Allen Hazen]

So, India might join China and Brazil in having GEVO-16 engined units (Railway Gazette speaks of the new plant as building 4500 and 6000 hp units).

(I know U.S. railroads haven't, in the recent past, shown much interest in 6000 hp units. Given the cooling requirements of even the GEVO-12 in the ET44 series, would an "ET60" be feasible? Going by the comparison of the AC44 and AC60, it would have to be close to 80 feet long!)

[amtrakhogger]

Great, GE lands a huge contract and is laying off 1500 people in Erie. Go figure that one.

[v8interceptor]

So, India might join China and Brazil in having GEVO-16 engined units (Railway Gazette speaks of the new plant as building 4500 and 6000 hp units).

(I know U.S. railroads haven't, in the recent past, shown much interest in 6000 hp units. Given the cooling requirements of even the GEVO-12 in the ET44 series, would an "ET60" be feasible? Going by the comparison of the AC44 and AC60, it would have to be close to 80 feet long!)

At the moment an ET60(59/58, etc.) does not seem very technically feasible for U.S/Canadian service. A big problem would be the strong possibility that such a unit, largely due to the beefed up cooling system required for Tier iv compliance, would exceed the 425,000 lbs. weight limit that is supposed to be the maximum for six axle units on high grade track. It is true that both GE and EMD offer four axle (actually double interconnected BB trucks) options for export units, mostly for narrow gauge but EMD's website says the trucks can be built for standard and broad gauge units as well (in all cases they use smaller diameter wheels and smaller traction motors) but I doubt the Class 1's would be interested in something that mechanically different than their current fleets.
There is also the issue that the industry in North America did not find 6,000 HP units as operationally useful as thought. the preference is for six axle 4300-4400 hp road locomotives.

[MEC407]

I could see 6000 HP freight locos eventually making a comeback in North America, but they might be more likely to be fueled by natural gas than diesel, which might be the only way to keep the size and weight down (cooling and emissions control systems might not have to be as big, since nat gas burns cleaner to begin with). Either that or someone comes up with a smaller and more efficient way to cool a diesel. We're at a point now where the cooling system is about to become the largest section of the locomotive (aside from the frame). Eventually they're going to have to find a way to create more cooling capacity with less space.

[NorthWest]

India is like China in that they can afford to have a larger mechanical staff for an equivalent fleet due to low labor costs. Since they can devote more time and energy to each unit, they don't face the same problems with reliability that the North American roads had. Granted the GEVO-16 is much more reliable than the HDL, but this undoubtedly plays a role.

Given today's conditions I don't see a market for a 6000 HP locomotive in North America, at least for a long time.