Alstom (www.alstom.com) and two joint ventures in China — Shanghai Alstom Transport Electrical Equipment Co Ltd (SATEE) and CASCO — have been awarded two contracts by Chengdu Railway Corp Ltd to supply traction systems for 200 metro cars and a communications-based train control signalling system for the first phase of Chengdu metro Line 9 — the city’s first driverless metro line.

The two contracts are worth about 64 million euros in total, and the line is expected to start revenue service by the end of 2020.

When it opens, Chengdu Line 9 phase one will be about 22km long and have 11 stations. It will connect the city’s central business district with its West Railway Station.

Alstom will be supplying its OptONIX metro traction system, specifically designed and developed for the Chinese market.

All traction systems will be manufactured jointly by SATEE and CATEE (Chengdu Alstom Transport Electrical Equipment Co Ltd), with support from Xi’an Alstom Yongji Electric Equipment Co and two Alstom sites in Europe.

Alstom and CASCO will equip Chengdu Line 9 with its Urbalis signalling system.

This is a service-proven solution that has been ordered by 54 metro lines in China, 32 of which have started revenue services. CASCO is in charge of the whole life-cycle management of the solution in China.

Chengdu is one of the most important markets for Alstom in China. So far, the company has won contracts supplying traction systems for 1,252 metro cars used on three metro lines, and CASCO has won signalling-system contracts for two metro lines in Chengdu.