China is set to develop "smart trains," using intelligent technology, as it is eager to compete with established rivals in Europe, Japan and Canada. (Photo : REUTERS)
Chinese companies prepare to take on big rail companies to modernize rail systems globally as they are now capable to manufacture and export top-end high-speed trains and related equipment, China Daily reported.
Wang Mengshu, a deputy to the National People's Congress and deputy chief engineer of China Railway Tunnel Group Ltd., said that China is set to further develop "smart trains," using intelligent technology, as it is eager to compete with established rivals in Europe, Japan and Canada.
Wang added that China is in talks about high-speed rail projects with more than 30 countries, including the United States, Russia, Brazil, Turkey, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
"China's first high-speed rail project in Indonesia will arouse more countries' interest, which are keen to put their economic growth on a firmer footing through efficient transportation systems and regional connectivity," Wang said.
Last year, the Indonesian government has chosen China to build its first bullet rail link, the 150-km Jakarta-Bandung link. China was also tasked to construct the $5.5-billion high-speed railway line from Jakarta to Bandung in the Southeast Asian country.
Indonesia's bullet rail project, which is scheduled to be operational by 2019, will be developed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture formed in Oct. 2015 between a consortium of Indonesian state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of China Railway Corp. Group.
The project is funded through a loan in which around 75 percent of the funding was provided by China Development Bank, while the rest came from the joint venture partners.
"Even though China is a latecomer to the field in comparison with its German and French rivals, its rail equipment companies have thrived thanks to cost advantages, reasonable delivery times and flexible financing models," Wang said.
Wang added that China will further develop "smart trains" using intelligent technology to control the trains' speed, determine their conditions and detect fault digitally.
In September, the Chinese government announced a joint venture by Chinese rail companies, including China Railway Construction Corp., China Railway Corp., and XpressWest Enterprises, a U.S.passenger rail service provider, to build a 370-km high-speed railway project between Las Vegas and Los Angeles.
The report said that the construction work is expected to start this September, with an estimated cost of $12.7 billion.
According to the report, China Railway Rolling Stock Corp. plans to supply more resources and manpower in the global high-speed rail equipment market, especially in developed economies such as the U.S. or the U.K. to support its growth over the next decade.
Yu Weiping, CRRC's vice president, said that the company is ready to help in the new high-speed rail project in the U.S. It invested $60 million for the construction of a new manufacturing facility to produce railcars in Springfield, Massachusetts, last year. The company also agreed to design and supply 284 railcars for the Boston transit system's Orange and Red lines through an agreement signed with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
"With high-speed trains traveling at a speed of more than 300 km per hour, it will help the U.S. to change the situation of that country's ground commuting systems that have long been dominated by automobiles," Yu said.
The report said that nearly 100 countries and regions have imported CRRC's products, which include diesel locomotives, electric multiple units and light-rail vehicles.
Yu said the company plans to shift gradually from product exports to capital and technology exports in the global market.
In addition, CRRC is planning to export bullet trains for a 770-km high-speed rail project in Russia that would connect Moscow to Kazan, running through seven Russian regions.
The Chinese company has 46 wholly owned or holding subsidiaries and employs more than 170,000 employees in various manufacturing facilities and maintenance centers in Brazil, Malaysia and Turkey.
Through the Belt and Road Initiative, China will be able to export more high-speed rail technologies and related products to several lucrative markets during the country's 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), Sheng Guangzu, a deputy to the National People's Congress and general manager of the China Railway Corp., said.
Proposed by China in 2013, the initiative is a trade and infrastructure network that includes the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.
The network is expected to connect Asia, Europe and Africa, passing through more than 60 countries and regions.
"China will quicken the pace of promoting its railway standards abroad, especially in the markets along the Belt and Road Initiative," Sheng said.
According to the Government Work Report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang on Saturday, March 5, China will support rail equipment makers to expand their global services and production networks in other regional markets during the 13th Five-Year Plan period.
Latest figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed that China has exported railway equipment worth 21 billion yuan ($3.23 billion) between January and October last year, up 36 percent year-on-year.
More than 19,210 km of high-speed railway network have been built by the government across the country by the end of 2015, which helped develop an industry that would provide new market growth for the country during the 13th Five-Year Plan period.
