site.btaDeal Signed for Maintenance of 15 Smartron Locomotives

BDZ Passenger Services on Thursday signed contracts with DZZD Siemens Tron, a consortium led by Siemens Mobility, for the supply of spare parts and the provision of technical maintenance over a nine-year period for 15 Smartron locomotives acquired by Bulgaria's national railway operator, BDZ said on Thursday.

The contracts are worth BGN 83.8 million in total. They were awarded to DZZD Siemens Tron after two public procurement procedures.

The deal is important for the proper maintenance of the locomotives, whose warranty expires in 2024, BDZ said. The technical maintenance which the contractor will provide for nine years includes scheduled and non-scheduled maintenance, planned examinations, replacement of monoblock wheels and brake discs, emergency repairs and safety inspections.

The deal ensures that the rolling stock will be kept railworthy, operated safely and repaired quickly according to an approved schedule, using secure supplies.

In October, Transport and Communications Minister Georgi Gvozdeikov said that in the next two years BDZ Passenger Services plans to acquire another 10 new locomotives and 50 new train cars and to upgrade over 140 train cars.