KAZAKHSTAN: A US$1·3bn framework agreement for CRRC to supply national railway KTZ with up to 200 main line and shunting locomotives was announced after Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met the Chinese manufacturer’s President Sun Yongcai at the Third Belt & Road Forum in Beijing.
The October 17 agreement also includes the establishment of engineering and service centres in Kazakhstan, with CRRC expected to invest US$200m in the country. It had previously been reported that CRRC was looking to establish a locomotive assembly plant in co-operation with SilkwayTransit.
Tokayev explained that Kazakhstan was interested in increasing the local share of locomotive production by using advanced technologies, and could provide CRRC with a route to European markets.
He noted that CRRC had supplied around 300 locomotives and coaches and 6 000 wagons to Kazakhstan over the past 20 years, which had proved to be of high quality adding that there was ‘every opportunity to raise our partnership to a new level’.
