LAHORE: Pakistan Railways has signed an agreement with an American company General Electric (GE) for the purchase of 55 diesel-electric locomotives.
Federal Minister for Railways Khwaja Saad Rafique, during the accord signing ceremony at the railways headquarters, has said that he PR is planning to run a record number of special trains this Eid without increasing fares.
Under the agreement, the GE would deliver five locomotives in completely built units (CBU) form by the end of November next year. The remaining CBU locomotives would reach Pakistan by April 2017. The locomotives of 4000-4500 horsepower would be the highest capacity locos the PR ever had.
“Within three years or so, these locomotives would recover their cost Rs500 million per unit. The basic purpose to procure such high-capacity locomotives is to transport coal for coal-fired power plants under construction in Punjab.
“Some 40 of the new locomotives, 20 to 22 would be dedicated for Sahiwal, 10 for Jamshoro and the rest for other coal plants. The remaining 15 locos to haul freight trains to generate more revenue for railways,” said Rafique added.
