InnoTrans 2024 report (2)

On 24 September, Siemens Mobility unveiled its first Velaro high-speed train for the 2,000 km turnkey rail system in Egypt. The train is specifically designed to withstand the climatic and sandy conditions of Egypt and was presented to Kamel Al-Wazir, Deputy Prime Minister of Egypt, Industry and Trade Minister, and Transportation Minister, and his delegation, in the presence of the German Federal Minister of Transport, Volker Wissing, and Siemens AG CEO, Roland Busch. The train is the first of the 41 Velaro trains manufactured for the multibillion-dollar turnkey project, a Consortium between Siemens Mobility, Orascom Construction, and The Arab Contractors.
 
Michael Peter, CEO of Siemens Mobility, says: "The presentation of the first Velaro high-speed train is a significant milestone as we work to deliver sustainable rail travel for the Egyptian people. The Velaro is one of the most advanced high-speed trains in the world, incorporating the operational experience of over three billion kilometers. This Velaro will be one of 41 high speed trains, 94 Desiro regional trains and 41 Vectrons to operate in Egypt as part of creating the sixth largest high-speed network in the world."
 

The Velaro EGY

The Velaro Egypt, an eight-car high-speed train, is 200 m long and includes Business and Standard class compartments, along with a restaurant car with a gauge of 1,435 mm, designed for a 25 kV 50 Hz power system, with a maximum speed of 230 km/h and with power output rated at 8,000 kW. It has a length of 200 m, an axle arrangement of Bo'Bo' + 2'2' + Bo'Bo' + 2'2' + Bo'Bo' + 2'2' + Bo'Bo' and a maximum axle weight of 17 t. The ATC installed is ETCS Level 2.The train is designed for comfort and has a capacity of 481 passengers (479 seats + two wheelchair spaces), on-board internet and power sockets. State-of-the-art displays provide passengers with live train information throughout their journey. The Velaro Egypt is the latest generation of the Velaro platform, drawn from the Velaro MS used by Deutsche Bahn in Germany. It incorporates a distributed traction concept and is designed to reach speeds up to 250 km/h.

The external permissible operating temperatures range from -25 to +45 °C. Therefore, during the tests in the Rail Tec Arsenal climate chamber, the cars were exposed to temperatures up to 40 °C and 50 °C, with deviations of up to 60 °C, and to simulated solar radiation at an angle of 30°, with a power of 800 W/m², corresponding to Egyptian noon, to 1 050 W/m² (no such radiation occurs on Earth). In the interior, a stable temperature of 25.6 °C was maintained even when the external temperature was 50 °C and the radiation was 1 050 W/m².

This brings us to the next "desert adaptations" of Velaro trains. The interior of most of the three vehicles accessible to visitors at InnoTrans had their seats partly removed and an "exhibition" was set up in the space freed up to showcase the modifications to a vehicle designed to operate in an environment so dissimilar to the European one. For example, sand samples were displayed under the title "not all sand is the same", but these were only general examples and not actual sand from the Sahara. One of the panels represented the impact of 'sandblasting', testing the resistance of the paint to abrasion caused by different sized sand particles impacting the surface at angles of 7° and 28° and at speeds of 29, 44 and 64 m/s, i.e. 104, 158 and 230 km/h.

Computer simulations of the dust particle motion were also presented to analyse the risk of sand penetration through the gaps in the cars as a function of grain fineness and composition.

The air for the air conditioning units intakes on the roof and is discharged at about 22°C into the space under the car floor, where it mixes with the outside air and helps cool down the components installed there. The underfloor space is completely enclosed to reduce the ingress of dust generated by the train's movement and also to improve the aerodynamic cleanliness of the underside of the train, thereby reducing the swirling of sand dust caused by travelling at speeds of up to 230 km/h. This measure has been claimed to reduce dust by up to 93 % compared to the conventional design of the underside of the train.

The left illustration shows the critical air currents, where the purple rectangle to the left of the train indicates a crosswind, the yellow rectangle a sand stream, and the green rectangle a strong leeward vortex. The two side views of the train at the very bottom represent the flow along the train set with and without modifications.

Observant visitors may also have noticed the spoilers at the inter-carriage gangways, intended to disrupt the flow from the underside of the cars that draws the dust from the track to the roof sections; the careful placement of the spoilers is intended to redirect the airflow back under the train, as shown in the illustration on the right. In addition, all air intakes must be fitted with dust filters and all joints properly sealed.

At the time of the InnoTrans, Siemens stated that five pre-series units of the 8000 class had already been produced and these have already started test runs, so far in Europe. As for the rest of the batch, it is in various stages of production. The units are being commissioned at the Krefeld plant and tested up to 120 km/h at the Siemens‘ Wegberg-Wildenrath test centre. Tests at speeds up to 250 km/h will be carried out in Egypt, depending on the completion of the tracks and their technological equipment.

The transport of the first units to their new home is in early 2025 under negotiation, it also depends on completed facilities in Egypt providing place to couple cars into EMUs and provide is staging, including the guarding.

The transport of the first units to their new home is currently under negotiation, it also depends on completed facilities in Egypt providing place to couple cars into EMUs and provide is staging, including the guard. The current expectation is to transport the first Velaro EGY later this year. The same applies to the five Desiro HC units of the 0462 series from the same project, one of which has already been shipped to Cairo. The Egyptian Vectrons of the 1192 series are undergoing the approval process in Germany. A further 16 Desiro HC units were in various stages of production or pre-assembly.
 

Civil works on track

The Egyptian high-speed railway project is making significant progress, starting with the first phase in Cairo. The Green Line, which spans 660 km from Ain Sokhna to Marsa Matrouh via Cairo and Alexandria has seen track laying, and stations, and bridges under construction by local contractors. Key milestones also include the installation of the first four transformers and construction of two substations for the electrified railway.
 
Construction efforts are primarily focused on the stabling facilities at New Capital Station (East of Cairo), which is the first of six and each will once completed accommodate on its eight tracks of approximately 200 m lengths three Velaros and seven Desiro HCs and three Vectrons, and the Main Depot (West of Nile). This is the first depot, which has seen extensive construction activities, including 11 million m³ of soil cutting and 3.5 million m³ of backfilling.

It includes a stabling area with nine tracks, each approximately 670 m in length, capable of accommodating 11 Velaros, 15 Desiros, and 13 Vectrons. The depot also features a sizable maintenance workshop measuring 260 x 260 m, a central control room overseeing all three lines, and training facilities equipped with driving simulators. The stabling facility at New Capital Station and the Main Depot will accommodate delivered trains by 2025.