ALSTOM and General Electric forms Indian JVs

ALSTOM of France and General Electric of the United States will be manufacturing 800 electric locomotives and 1,000 diesel locomotives in India over the next 11 years.

The two companies have set up joint ventures in which the Ministry of Railways has taken 26% stake, respectively, said Minister of State of Railways Rajen Gohain in parliament on 4 April 2018.

The locomotives will be manufactured and supplied from the factories at Madhepura (Bihar) and Marhowra (Bihar).

The companies would also undertake maintenance/supervision of the first 500 locomotives by setting up maintenance facilities at Saharanpur, Nagpur, Roza and Ghandhidham.

The ventures will transfer technology for maintenance to Indian Railway staff. The maintenance facilities would revert back to the Indian Railways on completion of the maintenance obligations.

The two companies’ ventures were approved by the Cabinet in 2010 and subsequently the bidding documents were approved by the Cabinet in 2014.

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) had issued the consolidated Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Policy which allows FDI in Railway Infrastructure sector on automatic route in the areas namely :-

(i) Suburban corridor projects through PPP;

(ii) High speed train project;

(iii) Dedicated freight lines;

(iv) Rolling stock including train sets and locomotive/coaches manufacturing and maintenance facilities;

(v) Railway Electrification;

(vi) Signalling systems;

(vii) Passenger terminals

(viii)Infrastructure in industrial part pertaining to railway line/sidings including electrified railway lines and connectivities to main railway line; and

(ix) Mass Rapid Transport Systems. fii-news.com