ASTANA (TCA) — Kazakhstan’s plant to assemble electric locomotives, EKZ, located in Astana, has signed a contract on assembly and delivery of 50 freight locomotives to Azerbaijan Railways, Director General of Alstom Henri Poupart-Lafarge said in Astana on February 26, the official website of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan reported.
Earlier in February, France’s Alstom and the Kazakh national railway company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) closed the deal of Alstom’s acquisition of an additional 25% in the EKZ joint venture, created in 2010 by Alstom, KTZ and Transmashholding (TMH) to produce electric locomotives in Kazakhstan. Alstom has thus become the main shareholder of EKZ with 50% of the shares, with KTZ and TMH both holding 25% of the joint venture.
“The first success is a project with Azerbaijan. We also look to all the surrounding states, such as Iran, that represents a large potential market. According to the contract signed, before the end of 2018, Azerbaijan will be supplied with 50 electric locomotives,” Poupart-Lafarge said during a press tour at the plant.
Poupart-Lafarge said the plant in Astana employs 400 persons who manufacture products for Kazakhstan and export markets. “With the support of KTZ, we intend to turn it into a local enterprise in the center of the development of technology and industry.”
The Alstom head said “it is more efficient to localize production in Kazakhstan provided that all components are located on the territory of the Customs Union.”
According to Managing Director of LLP Alstom Kazakhstan Bernard Pellet, this year it is scheduled to release 19 freight and 2 passenger locomotives, and next year they will start production of locomotives for Azerbaijan.
