Deliveries of T4000 pocket wagons started and more ordered

On 21 December 2023, ERA issued an approval for the T4000 pocket wagons from Tatravagónka so that the latter could subsequently start deliveries of a 200-strong batch to VTG. The first set of 15 wagons was shipped in January 2024, with the second set being transported to the customer in early February.

This type is a modification of the common and widespread T3000e type, to allow for the interchangeability of wheelsets of 1,435 mm and 1,668 mm gauges, and therefore intended for operation on the Iberian Peninsula. In Spain, a project called 'rail highways' (autopistas ferroviarias) is being launched, the essence of which is the transport of semi-trailers on defined corridors across the country.

To this end, several orders for pocket wagons have already been placed - Ermewa will receive 50 wagons from the Spanish firm Talleres Alegría, and Renfe Mercancías launched a tender for 75 wagons last year. This has since been concluded and the contract was again awarded to Tatravagónka. At the same time as the 75 pocket wagons, Renfe Mercancías tendered 74 60-foot cars, also with the possibility of changing the gauge.

In total, the contract for all 149 cars is worth 39.1 million EUR incl. VAT, of which 14.5 million EUR will be covered by EU funds using the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, the Spanish equivalent of our National Recovery Plan and therefore the European Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).