Alstom train firm unveils plans for £20M plant in north-west England

French train firm, Alstom, reveals plans for £20M site in Widnes, Cheshire, with plans to win contract for HS2 trains.

French train company Alstom have announced a new multimillion-pound plant in the north west, in Widnes, Cheshire, with an initial spend of £20M, delivering a significant boost to the region during a time of uncertainty following Brexit.

The new plant will create 600 jobs and modernise the Pendolino trains on the west coast mainline. It will contain a training academy, but it could eventually manufacture new rolling stock if Alstom wins a contract to produce trains for London Underground or HS2.

Nick Crossfield, Managing Director of Alstom for UK and Ireland, said the French company is “fundamentally committed” to the UK market, and that this represented a “step change” for Alstom’s approach to the UK.

He also described HS2 as an “incredibly important and transformational investment” for the UK.

The announcement also highlights the revival in Britain’s train manufacturing industry, with Britain only having one train manufacturer a decade ago, Bombardier in Derby. Hitachi, the Japanese conglomerate, opened a plant in County Durham last year.

“It is a step change in terms of the type and nature of investment that we have made in the UK.” Crossfield said.

“It is a fundamental step in a direction that sees us delivering a much broader capability in the UK market. The UK market is one of the most high profile and important for Alstom worldwide.”

The 39 acre site is due to open next year, with plans to grow the facility in line with opportunities that the company win.

Alstom confirmed it will bid to build the trains for HS2 and unveiled plans for double-decker carriages. It is also bidding for the New Tube for London contract, which is worth up to £2.5bn and involves designing and building 250 next-generation trains for the Piccadilly, Bakerloo, Central and Waterloo & City lines in London.

Crossfield said that even if the government did not go ahead with HS2, which is estimated at £40Bn, it “would not change the investment perspective for us here in the UK because there is a very significant and healthy domestic rolling stock market”.

 

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