Alstom and RENFE create a joint venture in Spain in the area of maintenance

Saint Ouen Cedex, France – RENFE’s board of directors announced on 28 November in Madrid, Spain, the creation of a joint venture with Alstom for train maintenance called IRVIA Mantenimiento Ferroviario. Alstom Transport and RENFE will hold a 51% and 49% stake respectively in the joint venture’s equity. The board of directors of the new company will be nominated equally by Alstom and RENFE. The head office of IRVIA will be located in Madrid.

Drawing on the expertise of Alstom Transport Train Life Services (TLS) and RENFE-Integria, IRVIA will provide high-technology services, covering the maintenance of rolling stock and the repair of powerful, latest-generation electrical and electronic equipment.

Initially, the new company will handle the maintenance of Civia suburban trains, manufactured in Alstom’s factory at Santa Perpetua de Mogoda, near Barcelona. It will also handle maintenance of the Alstom Alaris high-speed tilting trains that operate the Madrid-Valencia service. In the future, RENFE and Alstom plan to expand the activities of IRVIA to the maintenance of other rolling stock. IRVIA will thus become a supplier capable of offering high-technology services to the Spanish railway market.

Alstom Transport maintenance activity

Alstom Transport’s “Services” activity includes maintenance, modernisation and the supply of spare parts. Maintenance, which accounts for more than 20% of Alstom Transport’s sales, is one of the businesses with the biggest potential for growth over the next 10 years with the opening up to competition of freight and passengers transport. In this area, Alstom has secured major contracts in recent years to handle the maintenance of freight locomotives for BNSF (United States), of the fleet of Pendolinos in service on the West Coast Main Line (United Kingdom) and the fleet of London and Bucharest metros as well as Citadis tramways in Barcelona or Reims. In addition, Alstom has been supplying spare parts of the ACELA Express of Amtrak, the national railway operator in the United States since 2006, and was awarded a contract in 2005 to modernise the Spanish AVE (high-speed train).