Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - The Vietnam Railways Corporation (VNR) has asked theMinistry of Transport to propose Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc extendthe expiry for locomotives and carriages by three years.

Government Decree 65/ND-CP currently regulates that 40-year-oldlocomotives and carriages can no longer be used, which has caused a shortage oflocomotives and carriages for the sector, according to the VNR.

At present, the VNR is managing 282 locomotives, of which 262 are in use. Theremaining 20 are left idle because they are too out of date, have lowcapacity and consume lots of fuel while repairs are too expensive.

Data of the VNR showed 121 locomotives will not be used from the beginning ofnext year to 2026 due to the age rule, leaving it with only 141 by 2026.

Also under Decree 65, the VNR will have 196 locomotives by the beginning of2022, but it usually needs about 217 to accommodate the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday rush.

Hoang Gia Khanh, deputy director of the VNR, said all of the locomotives in useat present are up to safety standards and some have receivedoverhauls recently.

Regarding carriages, the railway sector manages more than 1,030 carriages.Under Decree 65, as many as 794 should have come out of use at the start ofthis year, but they continue to be used as the VNR says they are in goodcondition and there is no alternative.

Khanh confirmed that all of the carriages are periodically maintained and werecertificated by the Vietnam Register for satisfying technical and environmentalprotection regulations.

“All of the carriages ensure technological safe norms to operate on thecountry’s railway system,” he said.

Khanh said if the 86carriages that carry materials for railway infrastructure repair wentout of use, many difficulties would occur while conducting the project of renovatingand upgrading the Hanoi-HCM City railway system.

To have enough locomotives, the VNR started a project to invest in buying 32new locomotives in 2016. However, the project is still in the research stage.

Each new locomotive would cost about 1.5 billion VND (65,200 USD),so a great deal of investment was needed, said Khanh.

Vu Anh Minh, chairman of theVNR, said investing in new equipment would put a lot of financial pressureon railway enterprises.

Minh said that the VNR had worked with different foreign partners to discussinvestment methods to get more new trains while reducing this pressure.

“The partners will build new trains and the VNR will rent them. When therenting period ends, the trains will belong to the VNR. In fact, it is payingby instalments,” said Minh.

The price to make a train could also be cut by 10 percent by avoidingintermediate expenses.

“With the form, railway sector can replace all out-of-date carriages, and themore important thing is that it will help improve the sector’s qualitybecause it can learn from experience and access modern technology,” said Minh./.