New stage of Ukrzaliznytsia's cooperation with General Electric on locomotives supply to start in late 2019-early 2020

Ukrzaliznytsia CEO Yevhen Kravtsov has said a new stage of cooperation between the U.S. General Electric and PJSC Ukrzaliznytsia, which provides for the delivery of 40 diesel locomotives to Ukraine, will start in late 2019 or early 2020.

"I hope we will start a new stage on the supply of General Electric diesel locomotives before the end of this year, perhaps early next year. I would note that their production capacities are loaded, so we need to adjust to their schedule. We are currently discussing the supply of 20 to 40 locomotives. But most likely it will be 40," he said in an interview with UNIAN.

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As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukrzaliznytsia signed a framework agreement with General Electric on the supply of up to 225 locomotives worth US$1 billion to Ukraine. Under the contract, the local content share is set up to 40%.

At the first stage of the deal, a purchase and sale contract was signed between General Electric and Ukreximbank for the delivery of 30 GE TE33AC diesel locomotives late in 2018 and early in 2019 with the local content share being 10%.

On November 8, 2018, Ukrzaliznytsia tested the first General Electric diesel locomotive in a freight train at the Kremenchuk-Romodan railroad section.

On February 4, 2019, Kravtsov said the company had received all 30 contracted General Electric locomotives.