DENMARK: ‘After many years of planning and preparation, we can now start the practical work of getting the trains of the future to Denmark’, said DSB CEO Flemming Jensen when the national passenger operator signed a major framework contract with Alstom for the supply of electric multiple-units on June 17.
The deal includes a €1·4bn firm order for an initial 100 Coradia Stream EMUs and 15 years of maintenance. Options allowing DSB to order additional trainsets and extend the maintenance agreement up to 40 years could take the total value of the order to €2·6bn, with DSB expecting to procure around 150 trains in total.
Deliveries are scheduled to begin in the last quarter of 2024, with the EMUs being introduced on services from København to Frederikshavn and Rødby.
DSB said it looked forward to retiring its ageing diesel-powered trains within a few years. ‘Greener and more sustainable public transport is not a distant vision of the future’, said Jensen. ‘It is a reality that will be rolled out concretely in the coming years and which starts with today’s signing of the contract.’
Future Trains
The process of placing DSB’s largest ever rolling stock order began in 2014 as part of its Future Train rolling stock renewal strategy.
DSB sought a proven product from an experienced supplier, having learned lessons from its unhappy experience with the AnsaldoBreda IC2 DMUs which have already been withdrawn and the ICE4 DMUs which will be withdrawn as soon as the Alstom fleets enter service.
Alstom was named preferred bidder on April 12, and the contract signing followed an unsuccessful challenge by Stadler.
Modern, premium quality and stylish
The 200 km/h five-car units are to be manufactured at Alstom’s Salzgitter plant in Germany, and will have a capacity of 300 passengers. They will be fitted with the manufacturer’s Atlas ETCS onboard equipment using the Baseline 3 standards and an STM to interface with Denmark’s legacy signalling system.
‘Coradia Stream will deliver an exceptional travel experience’, said Rob Whyte, Managing Director of Alstom Nordics. ‘This modern, premium quality and stylish electric train combines innovation, sustainability and high comfort.’
Almost 400 Coradia Stream trainsets have been ordered by customers in Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Whyte said the latest order ‘further cements Alstom’s position as the reliable, world-leading train manufacturer of choice’, while its long-term maintenance agreements around Europe mean it can offer a ‘robust’ support network to ensure reliability.
