Two private companies are in the race to build 100 Vande Bharat Express trains for the Indian Railways. In a first for Indian Railways, the new Vande Bharat trains will have all-aluminium body coaches. Two companies, France’s Alstom and Hyderabad’s Medha Servo Drives Private Limited, have submitted bids for manufacturing the new Vande Bharat trains.
French mobility giant Alstom has been building trains for Delhi Metro Rail Corporation. Medha Servo Drives Pvt Ltd has submitted the bid in association with Swiss company Stadler.
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The coaches of the new Vande Bharat trains will be built using aluminium. Until now, Vande Bharat trains were being made using stainless steel. While this will make Vande Bharat trains lighter and more power efficient, the cost of production will also be reduced. This will be the first time in the history of Indian Railways that trains will be manufactured using aluminum metal.
Latest reports suggest that the train coaches will be manufactured in Sonipat, Haryana. As per the terms of the deal, the Indian Railways will provide the manufacturing company with the factory. Whichever company wins the bid, they will not only have to manufacture these 100 trains but also help in their maintenance for the next 35 years. The total cost of the project is worth Rs 30,000 crore and the selected manufacturer will get Rs 13,000 crore on delivery of the train coaches while the remaining amount will be paid after completion of 35 years, according to reports.
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The Ministry of Railways plans to launch the first set of the semi-high speed trains with sleeper coaches for the general public by 2024. Apart from this, the ministry has a target of operating a total of 400 Vande Bharat trains in the next few years. Currently the trains are manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai, but for the newer trains factories will be set up at Sonipat in Haryana, Latur in Maharashtra and Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh.
