KUALA LUMPUR: Integrated rolling stock and rail services company Hartasuma Sdn Bhd is set to complete the supply of 108 light rail transit (LRT) cars for the Kelana Jaya line.
In a statement, it said that this is being done in consortium with Alstom SA, a global rolling stock manufacturer. The Alstom-Hartasuma consortium was awarded the contract in 2017, under the Kuala Lumpur Additional Vehicle (KLAV) 27 project, valued at RM1.72 billion.
Additionally, Hartasuma is in the midst of assembling the bogies for these LRT cars in Malaysia.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong witnessed the train’s final assembly, specifically the bogies’ assembly process, in Hartasuma’s production facility in Pulau Indah, Selangor, today. Its consortium partner Alstom SA, in Mexico, previously performed this capability.
Hartasuma is also working with the National Railway Centre of Excellence, a unit under the Ministry of Transport, to be a qualified Tier 1 vendor for local bogie assembly and overhaul under the Railway Industry Development Programme.
Hartasuma co-founder and executive director Tan Sri Ravindran Menon said initiatives like this increase Malaysia’s technical capabilities and helps reduce foreign outflows. The local participation is expected to increase in its upcoming projects.
“These types of technology transfer have also allowed us to explore other opportunities such as the cable car systems. This technology is environmentally friendly, sustainable, and economically sensible. It will mark our shift from contracting-based revenue to concessions,” said Ravindran.
Meanwhile, the company is focusing on developing human capital for the railway industry.
“Hartasuma is now evolving into a teaching factory that develops and nurtures local talents in various areas of expertise within the railway industry. We have tied up with academic institutions like Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Kuala Lumpur and Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, and will be a part of an ecosystem that produces sought after skilled workforce,” he added.
Alstom has partnered with Hartasuma for almost two decades in bidding and executing rail projects in Malaysia. The Alstom-Hartasuma consortium delivered 35 of the 818 series in 2009 and performed the mid-life refurbishment of 68 cars on the Kelana Jaya line.
