Etihad Rail signs deals with top European companies


Etihad Rail has signed deals with top European companies - Spanish railway operator Renfe; Britain's GB Railfreight and UK's High Speed 1 - for exchange of knowledge, expertise and best practices in freight and passenger rail services and operations.

Etihad Rail, the developer of UAE's national rail network, has signed MoUs with three major European companies -Renfe, Spain’s national railway operator; High Speed 1, the first high-speed railway in UK and GB Railfreight, the British rail freight company. 
 
These are mainly aimed at exchange of knowledge, expertise and best practices in freight and passenger rail services and operations, said a statement from Etihad Rail. 
 
It comes as part of Etihad Rail’s efforts for developing railway services as part of the UAE National Railways Programme, it added.
 
The MoUs were signed during the second day of Middle East Rail 2022, a major industry event held at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Centre (ADNEC).
 
Renfe is a leader in rail transport for passengers and goods that operates the largest high-speed rail network in Europe and the second largest in the world. It runs about 5,000 trains per day and transports more than 500 million passengers per year.
 
High Speed 1 operates high-speed passenger trains in the UK and has the concession to own, operate and maintain the Britain's only high-speed railway.
 
In addition, GB Railfreight is the third largest rail freight company in the UK, and one of the fastest-growing companies in the railway sector, moving 22% of the UK’s rail freight.
 
These MoUs centre on exchanging knowledge, expertise, and the best practices in the railway sector, rail maintenance, and managing technical development such as the planning, design, development, and commissioning, said Shadi Malak, CEO of Etihad Rail, after signing the deal with Juan Matías Archilla, Senior Manager of International Business at Renfe, Dyan Crowther, the CEO of High Speed 1, and John Smith, the CEO of GB Railfreight, in the presence of officials from both sides.
 
“Etihad Rail is committed to achieving the goals of the National Railways Programme and completing the Etihad Rail project on schedule," stated Malak.
 
"We are constantly working to sign agreements and build partnerships to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the National Rail Network, as part of Etihad Rail’s diligent efforts for bolstering cooperation and exchanging expertise with some of the global leaders in the railway network, to provide the best world-class services," he added.-TradeArabia News Service