KAZAKHSTAN: The city of Pavlodar is planning to acquire up to 25 energy-efficient trams with traction batteries to help renew its fleet.
The order will be financed with a €10m loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development and a €4m loan from the Clean Technology Fund plus €2m from Pavlodar oblast.
EBRD said trams handle almost 40% of passenger traffic in the city of more than 360 000 people. However, nearly 60% of the fleet dates from the 1970s and 1980s and requires urgent renewal.
The new trams will have a range of up to 20 km using battery power, enabling them to continue operating during electricity outages to help reduce traffic congestion. This would also enable the network to be expanded without installing overhead electrification.
As part of the project, the municipal tram company will deliver public awareness campaigns to improve safety for female tram drivers and passengers.
‘Trams are widely recognised as an ecologically friendly and efficient means of transport’, said EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso on October 31. ‘We are pleased to help our long-term counterpart, the city of Pavlodar, to renew its rolling stock.’
The city’s most recent tram purchase was from Belarus-based Belkommunmash, but the new cars are unlikely to be from the same supplier. EBRD has restricted Belarus and Russia’s access to its financing since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
