Kazakhstan to supply electric locomotives to Azerbaijan

Alstom Transport has signed a contract to supply 50 KZ8A freight locomotives produced in Astana-based Elektrovoz Kurastyru Zauitty to Azerbaijan Railways beginning from 2016, Tengrinews reports citing Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, Kazakhstan’s national railway company.

The contract was signed in the presence of the President of Alstom's Transport Sector Henri Poupart-Lafarge, Minister of Transportation of Azerbaijan Ziya Mammadov and Chairman of Azerbaijan Railways Arif Askerov in Baku, Azerbaijan. The total amount of the contract is €300 million ($411.5 million).

Elektrovoz Kurastyru Zauitty along with Alstom manufacturing company will assemble the KZ8A electric locomotives in Astana, Kazakhstan. 

The KZ8A freight locomotives are among the most powerful (8,800 kW) locomotives with asynchronous traction able to run at 120 km/h. It can operate in extreme weather conditions at a temperature from -50 °C to +50 °C. It is a modern electric locomotive meeting the innovative requirements, completely computerized and equipped with the latest engineering developments. The two-sectioned KZ8A can carry up to 9 tons of cargo at a fast speed.

Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev launched the electric locomotive plant Elektrovoz Kurastyru Zauitty in Astana in December 2012. The total cost of the project exceeded 18 billion tenge ($117 million). The project was designed to create 650 new jobs.

Its founders are Remlokomotiv (a branch company of Kazakhstan Temir Zholy), Alstom Holdings (a French company producing equipment for railroad transport) and TransMashHolding (Russia’s biggest company in transport engineering).

First 10 electric locomotives were made at Belfort-based Alstom manufacturing site in France, others will be assembled at Astana-based Elektrovoz Kurastyru Zauitty.

The electric locomotive plant uses Alstom technologies to produce four-, six- and eight-axle electric locomotives with induction motors for freight and passenger railroad transportation. Spare parts are supplied by Alstom and TransMashHolding. The plant’s annual capacity can make around 100 sections of electric locomotives. They are aimed first of all to meet the growing needs of Kazakhstan railroads. But the plan is that around 40 percent of the locomotives will be exported to CIS countries (post-Soviet space).