US rail operator Amtrak on Friday awarded a US$2 billion deal to French manufacturer Alstom SA to supply new trains for its key Acela service between Washington, New York and Boston.
The landmark deal for 28 new passenger trains is to boost Amtrak’s speed and capacity along its most heavily used and profitable route, with more than 3.5 million passengers a year, from 2021.
The trains are to carry more than 400 passengers, about one-third more than the existing Acela northeastern corridor express service, with a maximum speed of 300kph, although normal speeds are to hover near 260kph.
Photo: AFP
In the deal, Alstom, which makes France’s famed TGV trains, agreed to manufacture most of the new equipment for Amtrak, dubbed its Avelia Liberty line, at its plant in Hornell, New York.
The new trains, which would also serve Baltimore, Philadelphia and other key cities on the 730km route, would be able to run faster than current trains in part due to the use of Alstom’s Tiltronix system allowing the trains to lean more deeply into curves, avoiding sharp slowdowns.
US Vice President Joe Biden, a strong advocate of high-speed rail, said at a ceremony that strengthening the Acela service is crucial, as it serves one of the most densely populated and economically important regions of the country.
“This area from Boston to Washington is home to one out of every seven Americans,” he said, calling the northeast corridor “fundamentally important” to the economy.
Amtrak and Alstom said prototypes for the new trainsets will be ready in 2019, and enter commercial service two years later.
The revamp of the Acela fleet will also be matched by upgrades to stations and the rail line, Amtrak said.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
RSS