New Zealand rail operator KiwiRail has ordered 450 rail wagons from a Chinese manufacturer.
In a short statement on February 8, the operator detailed it had entered into a contract with CRRC Qiqihar Rolling Stock Co. for the construction of 450 flat-top rail wagons.
The operator did not say how much the contract was worth, only that it was disclosing the purchase under the Crown’s SOE continuous disclosure rules for transactions of more than $50 million.
It said delivery of the wagons is expected prior to the 2019 peak freight season.
In FY18 KiwiRail launched a strategy to deliver future rollingstock, citing “decades of underinvestment in its assets,” and noting “many of its trains and wagons are at the end of their useful lives”.
KiwiRail acquired 150 new wagons in FY18, and said in its annual integrated report it was targeting the acquisition of 235 heavy wagons in FY19.