FRENCH high-speed new entrant Velvet has unveiled the first of 12 Avelia Horizon double-deck trains on order from Alstom. The new fleet is due to enter service in 2028 on Velvet services from Paris to Angers, Rennes, Nantes and Bordeaux in western and southwestern France.
The first train, comprised of two power cars and nine trailer cars, was unveiled on April 22 at Alstom’s Bellevue site in La Rochelle. Static tests are due to be completed there by the end of this year, followed by dynamic trials in 2027.
The new fleet was ordered in October 2024. Production began in July 2025 and is proceeding to schedule, according to Velvet. The project involves 11 Alstom plants in France including Aytré in La Rochelle which builds passenger cars, and Belfort in eastern France which specialises in locomotive and power car production.
The Velvet fleet will be maintained by Alstom at what is described as France’s first independent rolling stock maintenance facility, located at Marcheprime southwest of Bordeaux on the main line to the Spanish border. The new facility is being built by Lisea, concessionaire of the Tours - Bordeaux high-speed line. Since the formal start of work in the summer of 2025 work had been proceeding to schedule, according to Velvet, with completion due in 2027.
The launch of high-speed operations, including the new Avelia Horizon fleet, is being financed with €1bn raised in June 2024 from Antin Infrastructure Partners. By offering an additional 10 million seats a year and competing with French National Railways (SNCF), Velvet aims to meet growing demand for travel between major French cities that is currently not being satisfied due to an insufficient number of high-speed services. It estimates that at present 15% of potential rail passengers are forced to switch to the private car, bus or air, a figure that could rise to 25% by 2030.
“The unveiling of our first train, in the heart of our region, marks an important milestone for Velvet,” says company president and co-founder, Rachel Picard.
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