By using this site, you agree with our cookies usage in accordance with our cookies policy. You can always disable cookies in your browser settings.

6+

6+

Alstom sells its plants and two train platforms IP rights to CAF

26 November 2021
Reading time ~ 3 min
Presentation of Coradia Polyvalent EMU for the Leman Express regional passenger rail services in 2019
Presentation of Coradia Polyvalent EMU for the Leman Express regional passenger rail services in 2019. Source: Jean Schweitzer, Alstom
Belov Sergey, Editor-in-Chief, ROLLINGSTOCK Agency
Reading time ~ 3 min
Litvintsova Olga, Editor of International Projects, ROLLINGSTOCK Agency

France, Germany: CAF is to acquire the Reichshoffen plant in France and the intellectual property rights on the Coradia Polyvalent platform it produces, as well as a part of the Hennigsdorf site in Germany, together with the intellectual property rights on Talent 3 trains.

The deal is going under EU condition set for Alstom’s takeover of Bombardier Transportation in early 2021 and is due to be closed between April and September 2022.

Right after acquisition, there was another producer as the priority buyer of these Alstom’s assets: the exclusive negotiations right was provided to Skoda Transportation. The deal was scheduled to be announced by the end of April 2021, but no official announcement followed. During the negotiations a tragedy happened – on March 27, Peter Kellner, the owner of Skoda Transportation, crashed in a helicopter in the Alaska mountains, and died.

The Polyvalent platform is the most modern in the Alstom’s Coradia family with more than 300 trains built since 2014. In April this year, regions of France placed a €190 mln order for 12 Polyvalent 4-car trains with hybrid traction powered by hydrogen fuel cells and overhead catenary. The Reichshoffen plant capacity allow to produce up to 500 of MU coaches per year.

The Talent 3 platform was unveiled by Bombardier Transportation in 2016. At the same time, the manufacturer signed a framework agreement to supply 300 of these trains to OBB. The first EMUs were planned to be delivered in 2019-2020, but they are still not certified, and the operator started to look for alternative suppliers. In 2018, with the German state support, a battery-powered Talent 3 version was designed and produced.

Henningsdorf rolling stock production site in Germany. Source: Bernd Settnik, moz.de

The Hennigsdorf plant has an annual capacity of 400 MU coaches, and Alstom does not intend to part with it entirely. As Alstom’s CEO Henri Poupart-Lafarge noted during his visit to Henningsdorf this summer, the Berlin’s S-Bahn tender for transport services and the supply of 540 trains is of key importance for the French manufacturer.

According to the Railway Equipment Journal, CAF currently owns 10 production sites: five are in Spain, the rest are in the UK, France, the USA, Mexico and Brazil. At the end of the 3Q2021, Alstom’s backlog amounted to €76.4 bln, of which €39 bln are dedicated only for rolling stock supply. For the same date CAF’s rail backlog amounted to €9 bln. As to SCI Verkehr, CAF’s new rolling stock revenue was more than 7 times lower than Alstom’s in 2020.