NETHERLANDS Railways has awarded a €248m contract to Bombardier, partnered with Siemens, for 18 four-car and 17 six-car EMUs for regional services. Five consecutive options for 16 four-car and 16 six-car EMUs could take the fleet to 974 cars, lifting the total value to €1·2bn.
Announced on July 21, the deal had been held up by a legal challenge from Alstom that was thrown out earlier in the month.
The design will be based on the ET425 articulated EMUs now operating in Germany. Final assembly will take place at Bombardier’s Aachen plant, with a large share of the work subcontracted to Siemens at Krefeld-Uerdingen. Bombardier’s share of the deal is worth €104m, with Siemens receiving €144m. Deliveries are scheduled between September 2008 and October 2009, with the first sets entering service on routes in the west of the Netherlands.
An additional contract covers delivery of spares over the next 10 years.
