Alexander Kava

RUSSIAN Railways (RZD) has signed a letter of intent with Ural Locomotives (UL), the joint venture of Sinara Group and Siemens with RZD concerning contracts to supply 675 electric freight locomotives between 2016 and 2020.

CONSTRUCTION is underway on a new double-track, 1.8km-long tunnel that will replace the existing Beskid Tunnel on the Lvov - Chop line in the Carpathian mountains in western Ukraine.

GEORGIAN Railway (GRZhD) has taken delivery of the first train from a second batch of five inter-city emus ordered CSR Nanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock, China, at a cost of $US 30m.

IN CONTRAST with the decline in neighbouring Poland, Ukraine witnessed slight overall growth in freight volumes during the first half of this year, according to the latest figures released by Ukrainian Railways (UZ).

MOLDOVAN Railways (CFM) will launch an accelerated service between the capital Chisinau and Ocnita on July 28, using the first of a fleet of modernised dmus.

THE European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has agreed to provide a €152m sovereign loan to finance the extension of the first metro line in the Ukrainian city of Dnepropetrovsk.

KIEV metro operator Kiev Metropolitan today signed a contract worth around $US 134m with Kryukov Wagon Plant, Ukraine, for the modernisation of 95 type E and Ezh metro cars.