South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem has agreed to transfer technology to Vietnamese automaker Thaco for manufacturing rolling stock for metro and high-speed rail.
The Vietnamese company said Hyundai Rotem would transfer its most advanced technologies to enable it to manufacture under its own brand.
The subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Group will also support the development of an integrated system also covering signaling and communications and mechanical and electrical components.
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A train produced by Hyundai Rotem in 2020. Photo courtesy of the company |
Thaco plans to build a 786-hectare railway industrial complex in HCMC with a rolling stock manufacturing zone, a closed-loop test track system and a repair center.
The agreement between Thaco and Hyundai Rotem was signed as Vietnam mulls its strategy to develop the railroad industry.
Earlier this year Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh called on Thaco to participate in research, technology transfer and the production of carriages and locomotives for high-speed rail projects.
In May Thaco offered to build the North–South high-speed rail link at an estimated US$61.35 billion.
Thaco would bring in 20% and borrow the rest from banks with government interest subsidies.
Thaco has also expressed interest in developing the 47-kilometer Ben Thanh– Long Thanh rail line between downtown HCMC and the soon-to-be-completed Long Thanh International Airport.
Thaco, established in 1997, has interests in auto, agriculture, construction and logistics. It assembles Kia, Mazda and Peugeot cars, and manufactures trucks and buses under its own brand.
