Rail and mobility solutions company Alstom supported more than 9 000 jobs and injected R3.9-billion into South Africa as it continues to grow its local presence.

These were the findings of a report it released in collaboration with assurance, strategy and tax services consultancy Ernst & Young capturing the company’s socioeconomic contributions from April 2021 to March 2022.

The report creates a baseline understanding of the impact of our work to date and acts as a tool to measure its progress moving forward, said Alstom Southern Africa MD Bernard Peille.

“We have been in South Africa for at least ten years now and our commitment to South Africa goes beyond the manufacturing of trains or railway components. We are a reliable local growth partner and are actively participating in the development of an inclusive and sustainable rail industry through localisation, job creation and skills development,” he said.

Alstom has made significant investments in the country, including in Alstom Ubunye, Gibela Rail Consortium and, recently, with Bombela Maintenance and Alstom Rolling Stock South Africa.

According to the report, Alstom South Africa bought R3.6-billion of goods and services over the period, 79% of which were sourced from South African suppliers.

The company’s dedication to local economic development has resulted in increased partnerships and support for local business enterprises. Alstom collaborates with more than 500 suppliers in South Africa that provide components for Alstom trains and services to projects across the country, Peille added.

Given South Africa’s high unemployment rate, empowering historically disadvantaged individuals, specifically black women and the youth are key, and 99% of Alstom’s new employees have been local hires in South Africa, of which 90% are black Africans and 45% fall into the youth category.

Further, the company is committed to gender diversity and inclusion. Women compete equally for all roles, and as a result, 35% of the workforce is now female and this number will grow in the coming years through deliberate efforts, he said.

“In 2022, we expanded our manufacturing capabilities and can now produce locomotive car body shells in South Africa. Growing these unique locomotive skills locally is in line with our long-term growth strategy to introduce much-needed state-of-the-art freight solutions to the rest of the Southern Africa market. Reduced heavy vehicle or truck traffic on our roads also leads to less carbon emissions and improved safety,” added Peille.

Further, by 2025, Alstom will grow its employee base by 10%, increase female representation up to 40% in the management, engineers and professionals category, optimise manufacturing to produce 62 X’trapolis Mega trains a year, and intensify operational capacity to produce up to 50 locomotives a year, he said.

“Alstom is committed to developing greener, smarter and safer mobility for its customers and to build local capability. To develop skills and rail expertise, Alstom invested in multiple skills transfer programmes and sent South African employees to various Alstom sites around the world including France, the UK, Sweden, Australia and India, among others.

“Alstom’s South African employees also regularly undergo technical and behavioural skills training to ensure they operate at the same level as any Alstom employee at any site globally,” he noted.

“When we started our journey ten years ago, the rail industry in South Africa was dormant and significant effort was put into building Gibela’s supply chain, which now consists of more than 90 South African suppliers with 65% of the train’s content supplied locally," said Alstom Africa, Middle East, and Central Asia president Andrew DeLeone.

Gibela has more than 1 000 talented employees and has delivered more than 100 locally made trains to the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA), he highlighted.

The X’trapolis Mega Train being produced at Gibela for PRASA is made from 30% lighter stainless steel than trains made of carbon steel, translating to less energy consumption and lower greenhouse-gas emissions. In addition, 99% of the train components are recoverable and 96% of them are recyclable, thus decreasing the likelihood of a negative end-of-life impact.

“Alstom’s commitment to eco-design is centred on minimising the environmental footprint of its solutions throughout the lifecycle. This approach is already applied to more than 50% of Alstom products globally, with a target of having 100% of all new products by 2025,” noted Peille.

Additionally, Alstom supports educational initiatives in South Africa focusing on science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects in high school and up to university level. Through its joint ventures, partnerships with universities are in place to advance railway-specific skills development, expand scientific and research capacity, and attract and retain excellent researchers, students and scientists, the company said.