Western Manufacturers Fight for Orders in Poland

Swiss rolling stock manufacturers want to employ 300 to 500 people in Poland to manufacture EMUs. There is only one condition - Stadler has to sign a contract to supply them. The company is fighting for three contracts in Poland: 11 EMUs for PKP Regional Operator (PKP PR) and for Silesia and Mazovia regions (14 EMUs), as well as 15 low-floor trams for Warsaw urban traffic operator.

The first two tenders are about to be finished; it is possible that winners will be known by the end of the year.

Besides Stadler also Bombardier and Polish manufacturers: Newag, ZNTK Mińsk Mazowiecki and PESA Bydgoszcz.

The Mazovia/Silesia tender is supposed to be finished months ago, but because of protests by Polish manufacturers signing of the contracts was postponed. Polish manufactures claimed that they were discriminated as the ordering part requested that any bidding supplier has to prove his experience in EMUs manufacturing during last 3 years. No EMUs have been manufactured in Poland since 1990s. The court sustained this condition and now it is only Stadler and Bombardier fighting for the contracts worth 350 million PLN (88 mln EUR).

It is also said that this order is jut the first of a number of orders that are to appear in the nearest future.

Stadler announced that it is going to build a manufacturing facility in Siedlce (Mazovia) and invest 12 million EUR. Stadler Poland is going to launch in 2006.

At first the Siedlce facility is going to be engaged in final assembling of units produced in Switzerland. In the future Siedlce will manufacture aluminum car bodies. Stadler sees Siedlce and Poland very attractive for this kind of task due to our country's good geographical position.

Siedlce could produce 2 Flirt type units and 12 bodies a month.

At present Stadlers competitor employs in Poland 1200 people with another 2000 employees working for the company's cooperators. Office for purchases coordination for CEE region is also situated in Poland. What is more creating a maintenance center in Mazovia is planned. Ordered units could be manufactured in Bombardiers facility in Wroclaw (former Pafawag).

Source: Railway Market magazine