Name and Location
PRASA New Rolling Stock Procurement Programme – Gibela rolling stock project, South Africa.
Client
Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA).
Project Description
The programme involves the acquisition of about 7 200 new rail vehicles by 2034.
The supply programme will be rolled out in two phases, with the first involving the supply of 600 trains comprising 3 600 coaches over a ten-year period.
The rail agency signed a R51-billion contract with Gibela Rail Transport Consortium, comprising Alstom (61%), Ubumbano Rail (30%) and New Africa Rail (9%), in October 2013 to supply the first 600 trains from 2015 to 2025.
Ubumbano Rail comprises several companies that are keen to enter the rail sector as suppliers. The three commercial entities in Ubumbano Rail are Khipunyawo Rail, the Elgin-Identity Rail Corporation and Community Rail.
The consortium will provide PRASA with Alstom’s X’Trapolis Mega train, with each train comprising six cars capable of transporting more than 1 300 passengers. The trains will travel at speeds of up to 120 km/h and could be upgraded to travel 160 km/h.
The first 20 trains and 120 coaches are being manufactured at Alstom’s Lapa facility in São Paulo, Brazil, while a R1-billion 600 000 m2 local manufacturing facility will be built in Dunnottar, Ekurhuleni, to manufacture the balance of the trains.
Gibela will also provide maintenance, spare parts and technical support for PRASA over a 19-year period in terms of a contract worth about R10-billion. Alstom will establish five maintenance depots – two in Gauteng, two in KwaZulu-Natal and one in the Eastern Cape – that will provide fault-finding support, reliability engineers, controls and monitoring, and material requirement planning. Gibela will also establish two repair centres in Salt River and Durban.
In support of the programme, PRASA has embarked on a major modernisation programme, which will include depot and station modernisation; a rolling stock refurbishment programme; and perway, bridges, infrastructure and signalling upgrades.
Value
The project forms part of PRASA’s R136-billion rolling stock fleet renewal programme.
Duration
R51-billion.
Latest Developments
PRASA has, to date, taken delivery of five X’Trapolis Mega train sets being manufactured by the Gibela Rail Transportation Consortium, in Brazil.
A further two of the train sets, each comprising six coaches, are en route to South Africa, while the remaining 13 are in the manufacturing phase.
The 20 train sets formed part of the Gibela consortium’s R51-billion contract, signed with PRASA in 2013, for the supply of about 600 train sets over a ten-year period.
Speaking at the public launch of Test Train No 2 (TT2), on May 25, PRASA senior executive Piet Sebola reiterated that the first of the X’Trapolis Mega train sets would be commissioned by October.
Unlike the first test train, TT1, which had not been outfitted with any passenger comforts, the first three coaches of TT2, which was delivered to PRASA in March, have been fully fitted with all the interior components, including air-conditioning, closed-circuit television and an emergency passenger intercom system.
The three remaining coaches have been fitted with only electronic systems to allow for comparison with the TT1’s electronic systems as part of the overall test phase.
Transport Minister Dipuo Peters has called on South Africans to protect and value the new trains, stressing the importance of PRASA and government’s investment in new rolling stock to ensure the delivery of good-quality services to communities.
Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.
On Budget and on Time?
Construction of the Dunnottar factory was initially expected to start in early 2015, but delays in securing the site resulted in work falling behind schedule.
Contact Details for Project Information
PRASA, Moffet Mofokeng, tel +27 12 748 7000 or email momofokeng@prasa.com.
Gibela communications director Pamella Radebe email pamella.radebe@gibela-rail.com.