Siemens Gets $850 Million Order For 75 Amtrak Locomotives, Which Are Built In Sacramento

Source: Sacramento Business Journal, Mark Anderson
Photo: Courtesy of Siemens Mobility

The Siemens Mobility train factory in Sacramento has received an $850 million order to supply 75 locomotives to Amtrak, which will require Siemens to hire more employees at its French Road factory and at its repair facility at McClellan Park.

This order, announced today, is in addition to a $735 million order for train sets announced earlier this month from the Canadian rail service.

“We’re calling it a ‘December to remember,’” said spokeswoman Elizabeth Cho. “Its good for Sacramento. The employees are doing an awesome job.”

Delivery of the Amtrak order of Siemens’ Charger model of diesel-electric locomotives is expected to begin in 2021 and be completed in 2024. It also includes a multiyear service agreement at Siemens rail service centers, which are based at McClellan.

“The Siemens Rail Hub is a growing enterprise and we are currently adding new positions as our demands grow. Our organization currently has in excess of 1,300 people working here and we plan to add more in the future,” said Michael Cahill, president of Siemens Rolling Stock, North America, in an email.

VIA Rail Canada ordered 32 Charger train sets for service starting in 2022. That order is also expected to be completed by 2024 to replace older rolling stock on the Quebec City-Windsor, Ontario, rail corridor.

There are now more than 75 Charger locomotives in service. All of them were built in Sacramento, Cho said.

It takes about 45 days for the Sacramento factory to build a Charger, and the company can make up to four at a time.

Charger locomotives use a clean diesel motor to run an electric motor. They emit 90 percent less soot and emissions than the locomotives they replace. They can also operate at up to 125 miles per hour, compared to about 90 for older locomotives.

Charger train sets are built at a largely solar-powered factory just south of Sacramento where Siemens has been building trains and light-rail systems since 1985.

In May, Siemens Mobility received permits from Sacramento County for a 77,258-square-foot expansion of its manufacturing buildings. Siemens builds light-rail trains, heavy trains, rolling stock and locomotives at its 600,000-square-foot plant on a 60-acre campus at 7338 French Road, just southeast of Sacramento. In June, Siemens took out a building permit for $9.1 million in construction at the factory. The company also has a repair facility at McClellan Park.

https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2018/12/21/siemens-gets-850-million-order-for-75-amtrak