BOMBARDIER Transportation and Hitachi Rail Europe confirmed in July they will submit a joint bid for the £2.75billion HS2 trains’ deal.
On the same day that announcement was made, the shortlist was boosted back to five with the addition of Spanish company CAF.
All three companies have UK manufacturing facilities, with Bombardier and Hitachi supporting more than 5,000 jobs in Britain, including factories in Derby and Newton Aycliffe, and CAF due to open its new factory near Newport, South Wales, in October.
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Bombardier and Hitachi worked together on the ETR.1000 ‘Frecciarossa’ (Red Arrow) high-speed train for Trenitalia in Italy and on a joint bid for the London Underground ‘Deep Tube’ contract, awarded to Siemens in June and now the subject of a legal challenge (see separate story).
A statement by the two companies says they offer HS2 “a world class team that has established manufacturing and servicing centres in Britain” and “a deep understanding of very high-speed rail with a strong reputation for building and maintaining highly reliable, cutting-edge and iconic trains”.
Read more in the August issue of The RM – on sale now!