Press releases

2017/11/07

CAF SIGNS A NEW CONTRACT IN AUCKLAND FOR THE SUPPLY OF 15 ELECTRIC UNITS

CAF has signed today a contract to supply 15 electric units for the city of Auckland, New Zealand. This contract totalling circa € 100M, is comprehensive of vehicle maintenance for an 8-year term. In addition, the contract has an extension option to fit the units with battery packages. This would enable them to run on the line section between Papakura and Pukekohe, which is not currently electrified. The units would replace the old diesel units that are currently in service on this section.

In 2011, the city of Auckland awarded CAF with the supply of 57 electric units and their maintenance for 12 years. Those units were commissioned in 2014, and have since completed a total mileage in excess of 11 million kilometres.

The success of the network operated by Auckland Transport is illustrated by this year's milestone of 20 million annual passengers, for an over-year increase of almost 20% and a daily record of more than 113,000 passengers. Accordingly, the new units are essentially meant to take up the strong growth in demand experienced in this New Zealand city's railway network.

The units will be similar to those previously supplied to the same customer, consisting of three cars, two cabbed end motor cars and one intermediate trailer car, with a total capacity for 380 passengers. The car structure is made of stainless steel and each car is equipped with two passenger access doors per side. Also, the intermediate car is low floor to facilitate access for persons with reduced mobility and wheelchair users.

This contract confirms CAF's international focus with ongoing projects in all five continents. The company thus makes Auckland another of its strongholds out of a long list of cities that benefit from CAF's trains, including Rome, Brussels, Washington, Hong Kong, Sydney, Mexico D.F., Madrid, Freiburg, Helsinki, Istanbul, Sao Paulo, Santiago de Chile or Algeria, to name but a few.