ABB Is Awarded Several Orders for Traction Equipment to Expand Rail Fleets in the United States and Europe

ABB's traction technologies will improve the energy efficiency of the rail sector and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Fast Light Innovative Regional Train (FLIRT) for the Swiss operator Schweizerische Südostbahn (SOB) ? Stadler

ABB has received orders worth more than 140 million dollars from the Swiss train manufacturer Stadler, to which it will supply leading traction equipment for trains and locomotives in the United States and several European countries. Orders were registered in the second quarter of 2019.

In the United States, the order includes traction converters for 19 two-story trains of the commuter company Caltrain, in order to cover the expected increase in travel demand in the San Francisco Bay area. The new trains with ABB equipment will offer better service, faster connections and a sustainable commuter service.

Orders also include ABB high efficiency traction converters and traction transformers for 27 regional trains from Norske Tog (NT), the Norwegian public transport company. Fourteen of the new trains incorporate ABB on-board energy storage systems that improve energy efficiency and make the fleet more sustainable.

In Germany, the latest dry-type traction transformers and roof-mounted traction converters will be installed on 64 new FLIRT (Fast Light Innovative Regional Train) trains that will run on Hannover's S-Bahn commuter networks. The converters are based on ABB's patented multilevel topology and incorporate the most advanced semiconductor technology. Similar traction equipment will also be installed on 12 new FLIRT trains by the Swiss railway company Schweizerische Südostbahn (SOB). The trains driven by ABB will carry out commuter and long-distance routes.

For its part, the Spanish subsidiary of Stadler in Valencia has ordered traction converters and traction transformers for 15 locomotives that will enter service in a number of countries, including France, Germany and Spain. In addition, traction equipment has also been ordered for new railway vehicles from other European companies in Italy and Slovakia.

"In collaboration with Stadler, we have been successfully integrating new technologies into modern trains for more than 17 years," said Morten Wierod, President of ABB's Motion business. "ABB's extremely light and compact traction technology makes trains more efficient from the energy point of view, increases their operational performance and improves passenger comfort by giving them more space."

ABB has for a long time been offering the railway sector innovative and energy efficient technologies, and manufacturing and maintaining all the components and subsystems of the urban, suburban and high-speed networks, both for railway infrastructure and for rolling stock. On the other hand, ABB offers an assistance service throughout its life cycle, including maintenance and retrofits, of its large installed base.

ABB  (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) is a pioneer technological leader with a comprehensive offer for digital industries. With a history of innovation of more than 130 years, ABB is today a leader in digital industries with four customer-focused businesses and world leaders: Electrification, Industrial Automation, Motion and Robotics & Discrete Automation, all backed by the ABB Ability ? digital platform. ABB's Power Grids business, market leader, will be sold to Hitachi by 2020. ABB operates in more than 100 countries and has some 147,000  employees. www.abb.com