ÖBB’s engineering vehicles subsidiary Rail Equipment has awarded ŽOS Trnava a contract to supply 90 Type Faccns four-axle ballast hopper wagons.

‘After a long selection process and many technical consultations, we were named the winner of the tender with a total value of €13·9m. And now the contract has finally been signed’, said ŽOS Trnava Executive Director Zdenko Lančarič on March 31.

Two prototypes are to be produced for testing and TSI approval this year, ahead of series production from Q2 2022. Deliveries will run through to early 2023.

The Slovakian manufacturer said it sees great potential for supplying engineering wagons of this type, having previously supplied 140 Faccnpps, 70 Fccnpps wagons and 75 Fans wagons to Switzerland’s SBB, which has also exercised an option for 40 Faccnpps wagons of an improved design.

‘We believe that we will convince other customers, with whom we are currently sitting at the virtual negotiating table, about the quality of construction of our wagons for infrastructure works’, said Lančarič.