TMH presented the proposal in full at the INNOPROM. India exhibition, held in New Delhi on 9–11 September. TMH CEO Kirill Lipa first laid out the details in a speech on the forum’s business programme, then personally presented the project to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In his speech, Lipa pointed to the pressing need to build scientific and technological partnership between Russia and India in high-speed rail. “You have many attractions, you have many projects to be carried on and you will need huge, specifically R&D centers for this task,” he said. “I believe that Russia can be a huge and good partner in this specific area because of our strong fundamental science capabilities.” He also said it was important for the two countries to jointly develop production of materials and components.
Presentation of TMH’s proposal for a joint Russian-Indian project to develop high-speed rail technology, at INNOPROM. India. Source: TMH
Presenting the project to the two leaders, TMH’s CEO said the company is ready to develop the trains jointly with Indian partners and set up production in the country. He noted that high-speed EMUs could eventually become an important technology export for India, and put the project’s investment potential at more than $400 bln, according to TMH’s own estimate.
The proposal lands as India works to build up national capabilities for producing high-speed trains, following recently approved plans for a network of 7 high-speed rail lines spanning around 4,000 km in total. The country is currently preparing to build a prototype with a 280 km/h design speed, while also setting a target to start developing trainsets capable of 350 km/h.
Presentation of the Ivolga FG project to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Source: ANI News
TMH backed up the pitch with a mock-up of the Ivolga FG (Future Generation) train and an explainer video. The concept takes its name from the Ivolga multiple-unit platform TMH has built for the Russian market since 2014, now in its fifth modification, with the series as a whole topping 120 trainsets and still growing. The Ivolga programme also serves as a testbed for TMH’s driverless technology for passenger services on open infrastructure.
Mock-up of the Ivolga FG high-speed train concept at TMH’s stand at INNOPROM. India.
Per Lipa’s presentation, the Ivolga FG concept is designed for a 360 km/h top speed, a 100 km battery-only range at 200 km/h, and automatic train operation at the highest levels, GoA3/GoA4, with obstacle detection out to 2,000 m. The video showed the train with an aluminium carbody, a 30-year service life, an eight-car formation and multiple class options. “Up to 80% of the train’s structural components could be built in India,” TMH says.
TMH’s Ivolga FG high-speed train concept, proposed for joint development by Russia and India. Source: TMH
Competition for the Indian market is fierce. Japan, for instance, won the contract for India’s first high-speed line, between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, offering its new E10 train, which hasn’t even entered service back home yet. If TMH’s pitch succeeds, building the train would be a first for the Russian manufacturer too, since it has never produced this class of rolling stock before.
“We see huge potential in the market of highspeed rails. Today India is one of the largest countries by population, and naturally you cannot develop your economy without the railway sector at all and specifically big demand is coming in the highspeed railway [sector],” Lipa said.
Russia’s largest rolling stock manufacturer, and one of the biggest in the world, TMH is providing strategic technological support for a contract with Indian Railways to build 120 sleeper electric trains with design speed of 160 km/h, comprising 1,920 cars in total, and maintain them for 35 years. Kinet Railway Solutions, the Russian-Indian joint venture behind the project, has already built a modern production site in Latur and is preparing to roll out its first 16-car prototype. TMH’s role spans engineering, production set-up, design and training the engineers who will keep the programme running.
