ON A VISIT to the All-Russian Railway Research Institute at Shcherbinka on August 4, President Vladimir Putin was shown several prototypes for the next generation of RZD motive power.
The Russian President was accompanied by recently-appointed RZD President Vladimir Yakunin, who explained the railway’s urgent need to update its locomotive fleet. Prototype electric and diesel freight locos have been developed for RZD by Transmash Holding under a contract signed in 2003. Subject to satisfactory testing, series fleets of both designs are intended to start the replacement of existing classes dating from the 1960s and 1970s.
Completed at Novocherkassk last December, the 2EC5K Yermak eight-axle Bo-Bo+Bo-Bo twin-section electric loco is intended to succeed the VL80 as Russia’s standard 25 kV AC freight loco. RZD expects to have a total of 704 sections in operation by the end of 2010, replacing the oldest of the 4775 VL80 units dating from 1963. According to Yakunin, the 2EC5K offers a 12% to 15% saving in energy consumption compared to the earlier design, together with improved performance and lower maintenance costs.
Heading the diesel loco replacement strategy is the Peresvet twin-section 2TE25L from Bryansk, of which the first prototype was completed in July. Powered by two 3400hp Kolomna D49 engines, the Co-Co+Co-Co locomotives (Table I) are able to operate at temperatures from -50 to +50íC. According to Chief Designer V Petrov, more efficient engines and individual control of the traction motors is expected to give a 15% improvement in performance compared to the 2TE10M.
Series production is expected to start next year, and RZD expects to buy 204 sections by 2010, replacing some of the 1700 Ukrainian-built 2TE116 locos dating from 1971 and their 1981 Russian derivatives, the 2TE10L and 2TE10M, of which RZD has around 5000 in service. Bryansk is working on a development of the design for 910mm and 1067mm gauge to work industrial and regional lines.
The Kolomna D49 has already been adopted to power the 2TE70 heavy freight locos now being built for use on the Baikal Amur Magistral; Yakunin says 46 sections of this design are due to be in service by 2010. Also on show at Shcherbinka were the related TE70BC passenger diesel loco, which is due to go into series production this year, and Bryansk’s prototype four-axle TEM21 diesel shunter with asynchronous traction motors, of which RZD expects to order 45 series versions over the next five years.
The Mytishchy metro car plant was demonstrating its RA2 diesel railbus designed for operation on routes with limited ridership; these can operate in trains of between two and six cars. RZD currently has six RA2 sets in operation. n
CAPTION: RZD expects to order over 350 twin-section 2EC5K Yermak locomotives to haul freight trains on its 25 kV electrified routes
CAPTION: The 2TE25L from Bryansk Machine Factory is expected to become RZD’s new standard diesel freight loco
TABLE: Technical specifications for the 2TE25L Peresvet diesel loco
Wheel arrangement Co-Co+Co-Co
Power rating kW 2 x 2500
Tractive effort kN
at starting 2 x 419
continuous 2 x 300
Maximum speed km/h 120
Gross weight tonnes 2 x 138
Static axleload tonnes 23
Overall length mm 2 x 20000
Fuel capacity litres 2 x 7000
Minimum curve radius m 125 at 10 km/h
