Alstom Invests €50 Million in Bucharest Train Maintenance Depot

Alstom has announced an investment of over 50 million euros in establishing a maintenance depot in Bucharest for the new Coradia Stream electric passenger trains.

Alstom has acquired 30,000 square meters, including multiple buildings on Calea Griviței in central Bucharest, with direct access to the railway mainline. The transaction was completed with Atelierele Grivița, a Bucharest-based company specialized in rolling stock repairs. The project will involve significant upgrades to existing facilities and the construction of new ones to create a modern, fully equipped depot for the maintenance of the 37 Coradia Stream passenger trains purchased by the Railway Reform Authority (ARF).

The initial phase of the investment, an equipped depot for testing and maintenance operations, will be completed by the end of January 2024, with full completion estimated in the second half of 2024. The new depot will be equipped with state-of-the-art machinery and technology used in modern rolling stock maintenance depots in Europe, including a digital diagnostic facility based on the most advanced technology, HealthHub – Alstom’s solution for predictive maintenance, as well as an underground wheel reprofiling lathe.

Alstom is actively recruiting for the new maintenance unit, with at least 50 new employees set to join the company for this project, followed by specialized training.

In March 2022, Alstom and the Romanian Railway Reform Authority (ARF) signed a contract for the delivery of 20 Coradia Stream interregional trains and associated maintenance services for 15 years. In September 2022, an additional agreement was signed to deliver another 17 Coradia Stream interregional trains and associated maintenance services for 15 years. These 37 trains, currently in production, are the first new electric passenger trains purchased in Romania.

“I would like those who won the rolling stock tender to keep their word and bring the first set at the end of this year,” said the Minister of Transport at the Comarnic Beltway construction site, referring to the first new train purchased in Romania in nearly 20 years.