ASTANA – Kazakh First Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar and CEO of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation (Wabtec) Rafael Santana discussed the company’s plans to produce new generation green locomotives in Kazakhstan at a meeting on July 11, reported the Prime Minister’s press service.
Photo credit: Wabtec Corporation
Sklyar highlighted the government’s efforts to develop the railway industry, including updating the rolling stock fleet. He expressed gratitude to the American side for establishing the Wabtec engineering center at Lokomotiv Kurastyru Zauyty in Astana, a subsidiary of the national railway company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), which manufactures GE Transportation TE33A locomotives.
The TE33A reduces particulate emissions by approximately 75% and nitrogen oxide emissions by 35% per kilowatt-hour.
Santana assured the center would focus on producing locomotives using alternative energy sources such as liquefied natural gas, hydrogen, and batteries. The center will also improve the repair and maintenance of locomotives made in Kazakhstan and used in other countries, including Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Moldova.
Wabtec, a Fortune 500 company, is a global leader in transportation and logistics. The company is exploring ways railroads can convert diesel engines to burn hydrogen directly and adopt zero-emissions fuel cell technology. Wabtec envisions hydrogen as the locomotive fuel of the future, either through internal combustion engines or fuel cells.
In February, the American company acquired full ownership of the locomotive assembly plant in Kazakhstan. Last September, Wabtec announced that it intends to invest $1 billion in rail logistics in Kazakhstan and start producing hydrogen-fueled locomotives. KTZ plans to upgrade its fleet by using a $900 million loan from American Citibank to purchase 240 Wabtec locomotives.
