Press release -
Hitachi to Focus on Current Projects, Will Not Progress Bid for Thameslink Rolling Stock Tender
LONDON, 22 APRIL 2009 – Hitachi Europe Rail Group today confirmed that it will not progress in bidding for the provision of new trains for the Thameslink service. By doing so, the company is able to continue its focus on current and future commitments.
Alistair Dormer, Managing Director of Hitachi Europe Rail Group, said: “We are firmly dedicated to the UK rail industry and are currently working towards delivering the class 395 trains into service later this year. Our strategic focus is to successfully fulfil our current commitments and to further build our capabilities in the UK to respond to future bids.
“At the heart of our company lies the belief that whatever our commitments, we want to deliver the best possible result for the UK rail industry and UK passengers. We are in the early planning stages for our rolling stock manufacturing and assembly facility in the UK, which will serve as a European manufacturing hub. These are the strategic activities on which we as a company will continue to focus.”
As part of the Agility Trains consortium, which was recently announced preferred bidder for the Intercity Express Programme (IEP), Hitachi Europe Rail Group continues its discussion with the Department for Transport to bring the contract to close.
Hitachi has informed the Department for Transport of its decision not to progress in bidding for the Thameslink contract.
..ends..
Note to editors: Hitachi Europe Rail Group continues to develop its offering for the Crossrail tender.
Topics
About Hitachi Rail Europe Ltd.
Hitachi Rail Europe Ltd., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Europe, Ltd. and is headquartered in London, UK.
Hitachi Rail Europe is a total railway system supplier offering rolling stock, traction equipment, signalling, traffic management systems, and maintenance depots.
Hitachi draws on many years of experience as a leading supplier of high-speed trains such as the Shinkansen (bullet train) for the Japanese and international markets. In Europe, Hitachi Rail Europe’s first rolling stock contract was to deliver a fleet of 29 Class 395 trains, the first domestic high-speed train in the UK, which are maintained at Hitachi’s state of the art depot in Ashford, Kent. As part of the British Department for Transport’s Intercity Express Programme, Hitachi Rail Europe will replace the UK’s ageing fleet of Intercity trains, and will establish a new rolling stock manufacturing facility in the UK for this purpose. The trains will be maintained and services in a number of new maintenance
depots along the Great Western Main Line and the East Coast Main Line.
For more information about the company, please visit: www.Hitachirail-eu.com .
