2023-06-16 22:53:31
The president and CEO of Alstom for the Americas persists and signs: the debate surrounding the usefulness for a country of having a high-speed train (TGV) is one of the 1970s.
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Asked Thursday at an event of the Council on International Relations of Montreal (CORIM), Michael Keroullé admitted to being surprised to see Canadians still hesitating between the option of the TGV and that of the TGF (high frequency train) .
“This is a debate that no longer takes place elsewhere. Canada is the only G7 country not to have a TGV on its territory. There are 10,000 kilometers of high-speed rail in Europe. And I’m not talking regarding Asia; where we are talking regarding hundreds of thousands of kilometers in China alone…”
The big boss of Alstom, of which the Caisse de depot et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is today the largest shareholder – with a 17.5% stake -, recalls that the Quebec-Toronto rail corridor, targeted by a such a train, already brings together 18 million people, or half of the Canadian population.
The context might not be more conducive, in his opinion, to the adoption of the TGV option by the Canadian government. “We do not feel alone, on the contrary. […] We are very, very optimistic and quite convinced that high speed is what will make the most economic sense.
“It’s speed that brings success [que le train soit préféré par les automobilistes]. Not the frequency, but the speed. And then, he continues, we can very well afford both speed and frequency. That’s something we don’t say enough.”
The REM: still “a few weeks”
Despite the successive postponements of its commissioning, the CEO of Alstom assures that the systems of the Metropolitan Express Network (REM) in the Montreal region do not experience any specific problem.
“Everything works very well. We’re just extremely careful, responded to the Journal Mr. Kéroullé, on the sidelines of his conference. We want this launch to be a launch without any event. We want it to be a success from day one. It is very important for us, it is very important for the Caisse.”
A few days ago, The Press revealed that four weeks following announcing a new postponement of commissioning, CDPQ Infra, a subsidiary of the Caisse de depot, had still not started the final stage of “white run”. The latter consists of cross-checking – over several weeks – all the systems before the official commissioning.
“A few weeks late is not pleasant. But that’s better than a failed launch,” replied Mr. Keroullé. In addition to system testing, Alstom is currently working on the qualification of employees who will be responsible for operating and maintaining the REM.
“It’s a very complicated system, a whole new infrastructure. There are a lot of needs around that that you have to master. […] We need to mature. […] Trying to go faster than you really can would be more risky. And we are not ready to take those risks.”
And so, “in agreement with the CDPQ, we decided to take the time necessary to reach the right level of maturity for both the system and the operators”, he said, hoping that the first 18 km section, between Brossard and downtown Montreal, can be put into service in time for September.
“We’re talking regarding a few weeks,” he said. […] As they say, it’s coming.”
No worries for La Pocatière
The workers at the Alstom assembly plant in La Pocatière would have no reason to worry regarding their level of participation in the manufacture of the streetcars ordered by Quebec.
In an interview, the CEO of Alstom repeated Thursday that the 400 full-time workers currently hired by the manufacturer in Bas-Saint-Laurent are guaranteed work at least “until 2028”, and this, regardless of their level of involvement in the delivery of this tramway project.
One of the three concepts of the Quebec tramway as presented by Alstom (Harfang).
Taieb Moalla
Recall that Alstom, which bought Bombardier Transportation in 2021, was the only bidder following the call for tenders launched by the City of Quebec.
The $1.34 billion contract, signed in April, provides for the construction of 34 four-car trainsets (for a total of 136 cars) and their maintenance for a period of 30 years.
A little over a month ago, union members affiliated with the CSN had expressed their concern that the realization of this project would slip away from them in favor of Mexico.
It will not be, retorts the management of Alstom, assuring that the final assembly will be done in Quebec and that the requirements of the winning call for tenders forced them to a minimum local content of 25%.
Alstom might exceed this level, says its spokesman, Olivier Marcil.
But while the company is still designing the supply chain, it’s still too early to commit to it.
The manufacture of the cars of the Quebec tram must begin in 2025.
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