PJSC Dneprovagonmash, controlled by the financial and industrial group TAS of businessman Sergei Tigipko, as part of cooperation with Austrian partners within the framework of the innovative project TransANT, shipped the first lightweight modular freight cars (MultiBOX) to the railways of the European Union.
“Currently, MultiBOX is undergoing the necessary tests for compliance with European standards, and Dneprovagonmash is already working on fulfilling the following orders not only for modular structures, but also for cars, and is preparing to open up new opportunities for the European market,” says a message on the company’s page Facebook.
As reported, at the beginning of 2023, the Cypriot TAS Overseas Investments Limited from the TAS group received 40.03% in the Austrian TransAnt GmbH (Linz) - a joint venture created by the Austrian ÖBB Rail Cargo Group and voestalpine Stahl GmbH for the production of innovative and cost-effective railway freight cars.
Earlier in an interview with Forbes Ukraine, Tigipko noted that the joint venture created with Austrian partners, after producing 100 cars per month for the “narrow” track, will become the third manufacturer in Europe .
The innovative car of the TransANT company is a platform with an adjustable length during production and can be used for transporting containers. Various cargo modules (superstructures) are installed on the platform.
The DVM message notes that further development of the project, improvement of the production process, expansion of work experience within the Ukrainian and European regulatory field is an opportunity to provide work as a DVM team, as well as many partner companies - suppliers of raw materials.
“Ukraine is capable of producing railway cars with almost 100% localization. Ukrainian ore is used to smelt steel and rolled sheets, which are then used to make bodies, bogies, bearings, wheelsets, and castings. Separately, all these products have already been certified for sale on the EU market. it’s time to supply entire wagons to the European Union,” wrote on Facebook the deputy chairman of the parliamentary committee on economic development, Dmitry Kisilevsky, who was present during the shipment of products.
At the same time, he explained that the enterprise is preparing to develop new types of freight wagons pushed, in particular, by the difficult situation with the destruction of the port infrastructure due to shelling by Russian troops and the unstable operation of grain corridors, which influenced the change in logistics routes.
As reported, in 2022, 623 wagons were sold, which is 35 %, or 162 units, more than in 2021. According to Tigipko, this year they produced 20-40 cars per month, which is an extremely low load for the plant.
“Therefore, we are investing in the European market. The modernization was completely carried out to meet their requirements,” he said in an interview.
The TAS Group was founded in 1998 by businessman Sergei Tigipko. Her business interests include the financial sector (banking and insurance segments) and pharmacy, as well as industry, real estate, and venture projects.
