Alstom to open new maintenance depot in Bucharest
Alstom will construct a new depot in Bucharest for the maintenance of new electric Coradia Stream passenger trains with an investment of 50 million euros. It will service the 37 Coradia Stream passenger trains acquired by the Romanian Railway Reform Authority (ARF).
Alstom has contracted the acquisition of 30,000 square metres of land in central Bucharest for the new rail maintenance depot. The facility is needed for the maintenance of the Alstom-built trains that the company is delivering for Romania. In March 2022, Alstom and the ARF signed a contract for the delivery of 20 Coradia Stream inter-regional trains and associated 15-year maintenance services. In September 2022, an addendum to the initial contract was signed for the delivery of 17 more Coradia Stream trains and associated 15 years of maintenance services. These 37 trains, currently in production, are the first new modern EMUs purchased in Romania.
Digital diagnostics
The depot will be located on Calea Grivitei and will include both modernised existing facilities and new construction The land plot includes several buildings on Calea Grivitei in central Bucharest, with access to the rail mainline. An agreement has been executed with Atelierele Grivita, a Bucharest-based company specialising in rolling stock repairs.
The initial phase of the investment – a depot equipped for testing and maintenance operations – will be ready by the end of January 2024, and the full completion is expected in the second half of 2024. The new depot will be equipped with “cutting-edge machinery and technology that is used in rolling stock maintenance depots across Europe”. It includes a digital diagnostic facility based on the latest technology, including HealthHubTM, Alstom’s solution for predictive maintenance and fleet management, and an underfloor wheel lathe.
Alstom has been providing maintenance services for the Bucharest metro fleet for almost 20 years. The company says it is actively recruiting for the new train maintenance facility, with over 50 new employees expected to join this project and go through specialised training.
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