Saint Ouen Cedex, France – The Tunisian national rail company, SNCFT, granted a contract to the consortium lead by Alstom for installation of electrical work and signalling on the Tunis-Borj Cedria rail line (southern suburbs of Tunis). The contract is worth a total of €54 million, of which €36 million will go to Alstom.

Alstom is in charge of installing a substation (25 kV) that will power the rail line and its 105 km of overhead lines along 23 km of double track. Alstom will also supervise construction work to raise train station platforms. The rail operating system on the rail line (signalling and telecommunications) will be handled by Alstom’s partner, AnsaldoSTS.

Electrification of this line marks the first step in the construction of a rapid rail network (RFR) for the greater Tunis region. By restricting diesel in favor of electricity, this project is contributing to improving the quality of the environment. This new network will ultimately include five lines totalling 85 km of track. It will be able to carry over 20,000 passengers per hour per line between the suburbs of Tunis and the city centre. Commercial service is expected to begin during 2010.

This new contract shows Tunisia’s confidence in Alstom’s ability to support the country’s development of large urban (tramway) and suburban railway projects. Before the end of 2008, Alstom will deliver 39 tram Citadis trainsets that will be used on Line 1 of Tunis’s tramway system.

Alstom Transport’s Infrastructure activity

The company’s Infrastructure activity includes electrification of railway lines, track laying, modernization of existing lines and electromechanical systems for new railway lines, tramways and metros. Alstom has already electrified more than 10,000 kilometers and has laid more than 2,000 kilometers of track. When it comes to laying tramway track, Alstom has developed Appitrack, an automated construction tool that reduces both laying time and project costs. In terms of infrastructure, Alstom has been awarded large-scale contracts for Singapore’s automatic metro, China’s high-speed Shi-Tai line, the Paris-London link, Turkey’s Marmaray project and, most recently, Argentina’s high-speed train line between Buenos Aires and Cordoba.