EMD to supply seven locomotives for Emirates rail network

Etihad Rail, which is developing the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) national rail network, recently contracted Electro-Motive Diesel Inc. (EMD) to design and manufacture seven heavy haul freight locomotives.

To be delivered by 2012, the locomotives will be used for the first stage of Etihad Rail's network running from Shah to Ruwais in the Emirates. Etihad Rail plans to construct and operate a 165-mile line in the nation’s western region by 2013 that will be used to transport up to 22,000 tons of granulated sulphur daily from sources in Shah and Habshan for export at the port of Ruwais.

The line is the first phase of a 744-mile mixed-traffic rail network that will span across the Emirates and link the UAE to Saudi Arabia via Ghweifat in the west and Oman via Al Ain in the east, according to Etihad Rail.

EMD will design, manufacture, deliver, test and commission SD70ACS model locomotives, which will be designed and engineered to “withstand the demanding climatic conditions of this region,” Etihad Rail officials said in a prepared statement.

The locomotives also will incorporate the latest emissions compliance technology, they said.