International & UK Railway News.. 23rd November 2012

International Railway News from respected sources..


UK Office of Rail Regulation (ORR)

Understanding train operators' costs and revenues - new ORR study published

23 November 2012
ORR/19/12

A study aimed at improving the understanding of train operators’ costs and revenues has been published by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) today.
ORR’s analysis compares for the first time the expenditure of the 19 franchised train operating companies (TOCs), detailing how their costs and revenues have changed over time, how costs vary across franchises and an examination of the drivers of costs. Operator costs accounted for 48% of total rail industry costs in 2010-11, and are therefore an important element in improving the overall efficiency of the industry.
Over the last decade, there has been a strong growth in railway use - a 45% increase in passenger kilometres over the period – and the study highlights that:

• TOCs’ revenue now broadly matches their direct costs. The net subsidy being paid to TOCs by the Department for Transport and Transport Scotland is now £20m, down from £2.34bn in 2006-07.
• However, TOCs pay only part of the costs of their use of the rail network. In the absence of the nearly £4bn grant paid to Network Rail, charges for TOCs to access the network would be much higher.
• There are differences in the costs incurred by each TOC, which also vary when measured in a range of ways (e.g. cost per passenger kilometre, per vehicle kilometre, per train kilometre and per train hour).

ORR’s Director of Markets and Economics, Cathryn Ross, said:

"This is the first time detailed analysis of the nineteen franchised train operating companies has been published. It has involved collaboration across a number of organisations, and I welcome the commitment to transparency and accountability made by the rail industry. This is a really important step in giving taxpayers and customers access to better information about what they are funding and paying for in relation to the services they are getting.

"The cost of running Britain’s railways is too high and this must be tackled by the industry as a whole. Exploring and understanding the key factors that drive each train operator’s costs is a very positive step in helping achieve greater efficiency. Future reports will build on this analysis to examine how the specification of what is to be delivered in franchises contributes to costs, so that funders and the public have better information on what they are getting for their money."
 

Network Rail

Network Rail half-year results 2012/2013

Financial highlights of the last six months

• Revenue was £3,167m compared to £2,997m for the same period last year
• Operating profit was £1,226m compared to £1,227m
• Profit after taxation was £573m compared to £136m
• Capital expenditure – the amount invested in the railway over the period – was £2,064m compared to £2,071m
• Net borrowings were £28,043m compared to £27,200m at 31 March 2012

Patrick Butcher, Network Rail’s group finance director said: “The railway continues to see strong traffic growth which provides us with the challenge of getting the balance right between capacity, reliability and efficiency. We have seen growth on the network of 5% a year for a decade and this is set to continue. That means we continue to become more efficient so we can continue to invest to meet this growth.”

“This, combined with the traffic growth allow us to sustain high levels of capital investment, delivering £2.1bn of worth of capital work in the six months."

Investment

Investment in the railway continues, with a further £2.1bn outlay in the half year. The level of expenditure is the same as in the corresponding period last year, despite the suspension of work during the Olympics and the reduction in activity following the achievement of key milestones on the King's Cross and Thameslink projects.

There has been a significant ramping up of activity on the Reading Station area redevelopment project together with works on the East Coast main line and West Coast main line.

Milestones were also achieved on Southern platform lengthening and East London line works.

Revenues

Revenue in the period increased in line with expectations. The majority of Network Rail’s turnover increases annually in line with the retail price index (RPI), in accordance with the regulatory settlement. The RPI increase for the period was 5.2%.

Borrowings

As anticipated, net borrowings have increased from £27,200m at the year end to £28,043m. The increase is primarily due to the funding of capital investment and to a lesser extent the increase in the valuation of RPI-linked bonds. £1.5bn was raised in the half year through the issue of six new bonds, denominated in US dollars and sterling. US dollar issues are immediately swapped to sterling so no currency risk is taken. During the first six months of the year £600m was raised under the commercial paper programme.


Assets

The value of the railway network increased to £45,342m from £43,112m at 31 March 2012. The increase reflects £2,064m of capital investment in the infrastructure, depreciation of £737m and an upwards revaluation of £903m, largely because of inflation.

Outlook

Mr Butcher concluded: “Network Rail continues to evolve. Last year we completed devolving authority to all ten of our routes and now we can make progress to moving to a group structure that reflects this. We have already set up our infrastructure projects division as a standalone business unit, launched Network Rail Consulting as our international business and we have plans to run our energy, telecoms and recycling operations each with their own profit and loss account. We believe this will generate greater efficiencies and unlock greater value to the business.

“Our daily focus remains on running safe, reliable and efficient railway service for passengers and freight users alike. Whilst train punctuality is at high, historical levels Network Rail recognises that on parts of network performance is not as good as it should be. As we have before, we will continue to take any appropriate action to improve services.”

 

 

Alstom

 

Alstom and its local joint venture, Shanghai Alstom Transport Electrical Equipment Co., Ltd. (SATEE), have been awarded a new contract worth €37 million by Shanghai Shentong Metro Group Co., Ltd., to supply the state-of-the-art traction system to Shanghai Metro, existing lines 3 and 4. This new traction system will be operational in 2014.

 

According to the contract, Alstom and SATEE will provide traction systems equipped with the latest technology named ‘OPTONIX’ for the 210 metro cars of both lines. In operation since 2002, Shanghai metro line 3 (formerly known as “Pearl Line”) is equipped with Alstom Metropolis metro trains and Alstom ONIX traction system. This line covers 29 stations which connect North Jiangyang Road Station in the northern Baoshan District to Shanghai South Railway Station in the southern Xuhui District. Line 4 is a circle line with 26 stations, extending into Pudong area across the Huangpu River.

“OPTONIX” is a competitive system with latest technology, specially designed and developed by Alstom for the Chinese market. This advanced system reduces travel time and increase frequency of the train operation. Designed for high-speed metro, the system features lightweight and compact design, leading to high performance train operations. Already in service on Beijing line 15, this system is now fully operational with great reliability since the end of 2010.

“Metro cars and traction system of Shanghai line 3 was Alstom’s first contract in China in 1999 “ said Dominique Pouliquen, President of Alstom Transport Asia Pacific and Alstom China Country President. “This new contract clearly demonstrates Shanghai Shentong’s confidence and trust in Alstom technologies and solutions. With its strong localization strategy combined with enhanced R&D and engineering capabilities, Alstom has reinforced its leading position in traction system in China”.
Over the past years, Alstom has supplied more than 1,600 metro cars and obtained contracts of traction system for over 2,600 metro cars in China, including more than 1,200 Metropolis metro cars and related traction systems for Shanghai¹.

 

 Siemens

Siemens signs agreements with Russian partners on various infrastructure projects

During the 14th round of the Russian-German intergovernmental consultations in the presence of Mr. Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, and Ms. Angela Merkel, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Siemens signed a number of agreements with Russian partners. "Russia is a very important market for Siemens. With a comprehensive portfolio of innovative and ecofriendly technologies, we're a reliable partner for the modernization of the country's infrastructure," said Peter Löscher, President and CEO of Siemens AG.

 

Russian Railways, the Sinara Group and Siemens agreed to increase the production volumes of new-generation electric locomotives manufactured by LLC Ural Locomotives, a joint venture of Sinara and Siemens. Based on its positive experience of operating the new generation electric locomotives 'Granit 2ES10', Russian Railways expressed its intention of buying 675 two-section cargo electric locomotives in the period from 2016 to 2020.

 

 Continue reading here.....


International Railway Journal

MTR Corporation has awarded China Northern Rolling Stock subsidiary CNR Dalian a contract to supply 23 830kW diesel locomotives, which will be used on engineering trains and rescue duties on MTR's network in Hong Kong.

SHAREHOLDERS of Australia's largest railfreight operator QR National have voted by an overwhelming majority of 99.24% to change the name of the company to Aurizon Holdings Limited at the company's annual general meeting.

 

 

www.progressiverailroading.com US Railroad News

Chicago Transit Authority(CTA) President Forrest Claypool has proposed a $1.39 billion budget for 2013 that takes steps to address a $165 million shortfall.
The proposed budget would maintain current service levels and freeze base fares, but stipulate "modest reductions" in discounts for CTA passes to "bring them in line with other major U.S. cities," CTA officials said in a prepared statement.
Georgia to provide more funds for Savannah Harbor expansion.

Santa Clara VTA proposes extending light rail to Los Gatos.

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www.railway-technology.com Updates..


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