East Japan Railway to build train system in Bangkok

A Japanese consortium will build an urban transit system in Bangkok, as part of Japan's drive to expand exports of railway infrastructure to the rest of Asia, a report said Sunday. East Japan Railway, trading house Marubeni and electronics giant Toshiba have landed the deal, at an estimated price of around 40 billion yen ($405 million), the business daily Nikkei reported.

Under the deal, ordered by Bangkok Metro Public Co., the consortium will construct a new 23-kilometre (14-mile) rail line in the Thai capital, the daily said, adding the rail operation is set to start in 2016. The Japanese group will supply 63 train cars and build the power grid, signals and rail yards as well as 16 stations for the project. It will also provide maintenance services under a 10-year contract and about 20 technicians with operational expertise will be stationed in Bangkok, the report said.

Japanese railway operators are expected to broaden their reach overseas by joining forces with heavy-industry manufacturers and trading houses to promote comprehensive services, Nikkei said. East Japan Railway will aim now to win a contract to build a high-speed train line between Malaysia and Singapore, the report said.

Another Japanese train operator, Central Japan Railway, has already provided technology for renovating the automatic train control system of Taiwan's super-express train service, Nikkei said. Meanwhile, Tokyo Metro, which runs an intricate subway network in the Japanese capital, has been cooperating in an urban train project in Hanoi, the daily said.