Russia: Also at the end of 2021, the locomotive produced by the Lyudinovo Diesel Locomotive Plant (LTZ, part of STM) got the EAEU certificate. Gazpromtrans will carry out pilot industrial operation of TEMG1 on its railway line in Orenburg region.
The contract for the supply of 10 such four-axle liquefied natural gas (LNG) locomotives was signed between Sinara – Transport Machines (STM) and Gazpromtrans in 2018. The locomotive was introduced in 2019 and was sent for testing at the same time. “There are also a number of features to confirm the safety of working with gas, because there are almost 3 tons of LNG on the board of locomotive”, said Alexander Sachkov, Chief Locomotive Designer at the STM Research Center, in an interview with the Zen.Yandex channel “Plants and Diesel Locomotives”.
According to Gazpromtrans, the locomotive is equipped with two engines with a total power of more than 820 kW. Earlier STM reported that TEMG1 will use two V-shaped 12-cylinder “Kungur 550” LNG engines, produced by the Technology 1604 company in Yekaterinburg. STM stated that the savings in fuel costs will be over 60% compared to diesel counterparts in standard operating modes. In 2019, it was also noted that TEMG1 will be able to pull trains weighing up to 5,600 tons (up to 60 cars).
Cryogenic tanks hold 2.6 tons of LNG, which provides an operating range for more than three days. Also, TEMG1 has a digital control and diagnostics system that monitors about 1.5 thousand operating parameters.
The cabin of the TEMG1 locomotive during trials. Source: “Plants and diesel locomotives” channel in Zen.Yandex
The TEM29 LNG locomotive from another Russian manufacturer, Transmashholding (TMH), is still under development and has not been presented. As CEO of the TMH Engineering Center for Engines Anatoly Melnikov noted in December, the 9GMG locomotive LNG engine developed by TMH has passed the entire test cycle and is expected to be accepted soon.
According to the Strategy for the Manufacturing Sector Development approved by the Russian Government, at least 874 shunting gas locomotives are expected to be produced in the country until 2035. The agreement between STM and Gazpromtrans also includes the supply of 14 more eight-axle GTEM1 locomotives – they assume greater capacity and will be equipped with gas turbine propulsion system.
