ENGIE and Thales to design and build systems and infrastructures for the new Dakar Regional Express Train

PARIS, 29-Jul-2016 — /EuropaWire/ — ENGIE (mandatory) and Thales have been selected¹ by APIX (the Senegalese Agency for Investment Promotion and Public Works, under the office of President of Senegal) todesign and build systems and infrastructures for the new Dakar Regional Express Train. The contract is valued at €225 million.

The Regional Express Train (Train Express Régional, or TER) will link Dakar to the new Blaise Diagne international airport in less than 50 minutes. It is part of the “Emerging Senegal” restructuring plan launched by the Senegalese government in 2014 to promote the country’s social and economic development.

The link will be built in two phases: city of Dakar – Diamniadio (36 km), and city of Diamniadio – Blaise Diagne International Airport (19 km). Construction of the systems is expected to take 26 months, and is scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2016, with systems coming on line in late 2018.

Smart systems using state-of-the-art technology

As project managers, particularly for the design phase, ENGIE Ineo (mandatory), a subsidiary of the ENGIE group, and Thales (subcontractor) will direct the engineering group, provide overall management, and conduct all integration testing. During the system construction, the teams will contribute their expertise at several levels, using the most innovative, state-of-the-art technologies:

• Management of the fiber optic network for communication between trains and command center;
• Technical supervision of all train station equipment;
• Train control system: rail signaling;
• Power supply (low voltage: fire detection, public address system, video surveillance, passenger information, etc.);
• Catenary power station, etc.

The consortium will work closely with other companies assigned to the civil engineering, tracks, and stations portions of the project, as well as rolling stock. The consortium will also be supported by its local partner, Senegalese company CSE, for the civil and electrical engineering work and the installation and management of construction sites and living quarters.

This contact award constitutes recognition of the expertise of ENGIE Ineo, which creates and develops efficient and innovative solutions for connected cities and regions. It also illustrates the ENGIE Group’s commitment to develop its various activities in Africa generally, and in Senegal in particular, beyond ENGIE’s existing positions in North and South Africa.

Present in Africa for 50 years, ENGIE develops and operates electrical power production facilities (wind, solar, and thermal) in a number of countries and provides energy services (engineering, facility management, energy efficiency). It is also working toward developing gas infrastructures on the continent. This project is a new example of the Group’s ability to contribute to the territorial development and to African cities of tomorrow.

In the transportation sector, Thales, is a world leader in rail signaling, both for mainline rail (72,000 km controlled by Thales) and urban mass transportation (present in 40 cities), with development projects across 50 countries. In Africa, Thales is a player of reference in land transportation, with the deployment of signaling, ticketing and telecommunications solutions across Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa.

With over 30 years presence in Africa, Thales is partner of choice in the continent, across many of its other core markets, including aerospace, space, defence and security.

¹ The 22^nd of July 2016, ENGIE and Thales have received notice of provisional award for the project. This represents the first milestone in international bid processes, and marks the start of the mandatory appeals period ahead of the final contract signing.

SOURCE: ENGIE

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The link will be built in two phases: city of Dakar – Diamniadio (36 km), and city of Diamniadio – Blaise Diagne International Airport (19 km).