Project to equip 17 locomotives with ETCS under CEF 2 2021

Program description

The Connecting Europe Facility (hereinafter referred to as "CEF") is aimed at providing European Union financial assistance for the development of trans-European networks through the support of projects of common interest in the sectors of transport, telecommunications, and energy infrastructures and to exploit the potential synergy between these sectors.

In the field of transport, CEF is focused on supporting investments in new transport infrastructure, or renewal and modernization of the existing one. It focuses mainly on cross-border sections and removing bottlenecks and missing sections of the main and global TEN-T network and supporting safe infrastructure. In addition, support can be used to adapt the TEN-T network to the needs of military mobility.

CEF is administered by the European Executive Agency for Climate, Infrastructure and the Environment (hereafter "CINEA"), based in Brussels. CINEA manages European Commission programs that contribute to decarbonization and sustainable growth.

Project description

The objective of the Project is to equip 17 locomotives with on-board ETCS components, compliant with Level 2 Baseline 3.

The project is divided into 3 work packages:

(1) Retrofitting of 3 prototypes of the 240, 242 and 363.5 locomotive series,

(2) Upgrade of 4 serial locomotives of the 383 series,

(3) Fitment of 10 serial locomotives of the 388 series.

Within each of the work packages, a maximum financial support is set in the form of a maximum (fixed) unit contribution. The value of the contribution (financial support) for retrofitting is equal to € 1,500,000 for each prototype vehicle, for the upgrade category, it is € 95,000 for each serial vehicle, and for fitment, it amounts € 45,000/vehicle.

Thanks to this Project, the implementation of the European Train Control System in the driving vehicles of the ČD Cargo fleet and the readiness for the exclusive operation of trains under the supervision of ETCS will be accelerated. At the same time, railway operation safety and interoperability will increase, leading to a more efficient single railway area not only in the Czech Republic.

The project started on 1/4/2022 with an expected completion date on 31/1/2026.