Russian manufacturer Sinara Transport Machines has begun delivery of six TGM8A Elephant locomotives ordered by the Compagnie des Bauxites de Kindia bauxite mining subsidiary of aluminium producer RUSAL.

The 1 435 mm gauge, four-axle 882 kW diesel-hydraulic shunting locos are equipped for multiple operation and tropicalised to cope with Guinea’s alternating dry and wet seasons.

They were ordered in August 2021 and are being delivered in two batches. The first three left STM’s Lyudinovo plant at the end of December, travelling by road to St Petersburg for shipping to the Guinean port of Conakry. The second batch is scheduled to be shipped in Q1 2022.

‘This is our first export contract in Guinea’, said STM Deputy CEO for Sales Anton Zubikhin. ’I want to note that increasing the share of exports in the STM’s sales structure and expanding co-operation with industrial companies will be a priority for us in 2022.’

The first TGM8 four-axle diesel-hydraulic locos were produced for French company Solmer in 1972, and the design was subsequently updated for export customers in countries including China, Cuba, North Korea, Pakistan, Vietnam and Yugoslavia.