MTU to supply PowerPacks for Great Western Class 802s

The Hitachi Rail Europe Class 802s that are bound for introduction on the Great Western Railway are to run on PowerPacks from Rolls-Royce’s MTU company.

Hitachi ordered 136 Series 1600 PowerPacks, which will be installed in 36 of its Class 802 bimodal high-speed trains, from MTU’s facility in Friedrichschafen, Germany.

The trains will go into service on Great Western Railway services between London, Plymouth and Penzance from 2018.

As part of a long-term deal, MTU has already agreed to supply more than 330 of the PowerPacks for the Class 800 and 801 trains, which Hitachi is building for Great Western’s Intercity Express Programme. The two types of train are currently undergoing testing and are due to enter service on the Great Western Mainline from autumn 2017 and the East Coast Mainline from 2018.

Bernd Krüper, vice-president of industrial business at MTU, said: “With our Series 1600 MTU PowerPacks, Hitachi and Great Western Railway will be getting a customised drive solution that is powerful, economical and environmentally-friendly. We are proud that, once again, Hitachi and GWR have chosen our traction systems.”

At the heart of the MTU PowerPack to be used in the trains is the MTU 12V 1600 R80L, a 12-cylinder diesel engine. Key characteristics of these engines are their high power density, low consumption and low emissions.

(Image c. MTU)

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