Consortium China North Rail (CNR) Rolling Stock South Africa (RSSA), led by Chinese locomotive manufacturer CNR Dalian, has ordered 232 MTU Series 4000 engines from Rolls-Royce Power Systems for State-owned Transnet Freight Rail’s (TFR’s) new freight locomotives.
The €100-million order would see the delivery of Rolls Royce subsidiary MTU’s “most powerful” locomotive engines between 2015 and 2017.
CNR RSSA was one of the four companies selected to supply TFR with 1 064 locomotives as part of the parastatal’s R50-billion locomotive procurement project.
CNR RSSA would supply 232 diesel locomotives at a cost of R7.8-billion, while China South Rail (CSR) Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive would supply 359 electric locomotives at a contract value of R14.6-billion, excluding hedging and escalation costs.
Bombardier Transportation South Africa would supply 240 electric locomotives at a base cost of R10.4-billion and General Electric South Africa Technologies would supply 233 diesel locomotives at a base cost of R7.1-billion
The first 20 of the 3 300 kW, type 20V 4000 R63L engines, produced at Rolls-Royce Power Systems’ headquarters in Friedrichshafen, Germany, would be delivered directly to CNR, while subsidiary MTU South Africa was planning additional assembly capacity to accept the balance of the engines for final assembly, testing and preparation.