SHAREHOLDERS in Italian open-access operator NTV agreed at a meeting in Rome on July 17 to increase the company's capital by €100m.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held at Suchsdorf in the northern German state of Schleswig Holstein on July 17 to mark the start of construction on a new production facility for Vossloh Locomotives.

POLISH long-distance operator PKP Intercity confirmed on July 17 that authorisation of its Stadler/Newag Flirt 3 EMUs has been completed and delivery of the fleet has passed the halfway mark.

CHILTERN Railways marked the completion of tracklaying on its new link to Oxford on July 17, 100 days before the start of passenger services from London Marylebone to Oxford Parkway.

NORWEGIAN infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket has selected Obrascón Huarte Lain, Spain, for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for a 3.5km section of the new double-track 22km Follo Line from Oslo Central to Ski.

TASRAIL, which operates the 1067mm-gauge railway on the Australian island state of Tasmania, has invited bids by August 5 for a contract to renew sleepers and rails on parts of its 638km network.

BRITAIN's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is seeking industry feedback as part of a consultation on the potential for greater competition in the passenger rail sector.

CHINA Railway Investment Corporation (CRIC), the procurement arm of China Railway Corporation (CRC), published six tenders on July 17 for a total of 351 high-speed trains with an estimated combined value of around $US 10.6bn.

THE mayor of Freiburg-im-Breisgau Dr Dieter Salomon has officially unveiled the German city's new fleet of CAF Urbos 100 LRVs, which have been ordered as part of a €150m investment in modernising and expanding the metre-gauge network.