OREANDA-NEWS. The Prime Minister Serik Akhmetov took part in the opening ceremony of the memorial plate on the construction site of the plant for the production of "GEVO" locomotive diesel engines.

The plant will be launched in December 2014. The Prime Minister appreciated the contribution of the railway in the state program of forced industrial-innovative development of the economy.

• I would like to note that the National Company “Kazakhstan Temir Zholy” worthy of contributing to the development of the industry together with world leaders. Already built factories for the production of electric locomotives, the company now goes to the production of parts and components for locomotives produced in Astana. This is an important step in the promotion of local content in the project. I want to stress that Kazakhstan will continue to pursue a consistent policy of improving the business environment and investment climate - Serik Akhmetov said.

The plant will produce 300 units of eight, twelve and sixteen cylinder engines per year, ranging from 2200 to 4500 kW, rated speed from 950 to 1050 r / min.

The engines will be used for the production of "Evolution" locomotives in Kazakhstan, for the modernization of Russian articulated diesel locomotives 2T116 and in shipbuilding as well.

Export prospects for the company associated with the supply of products to the markets of all countries of the former Soviet Union and Mongolia. Gradual localization of production of engine components is expected in Kazakhstan. In 2015 the local content will reach 8%, and by 2020 it will be increased to 51%.

• In the short term by order of the President we created virtually new industry - the railway engineering. We have created a new production which you could not imagine before on the map of Kazakhstan. Since 2008 we have increased by 20 times the volume of railway engineering, from 10 billion in 2008 to more than 200 billion tenge in 2013. We plan to increase this figure to 300 billion tenge in 2015 - said at the ceremony the President of JSC “NC “KTZ” Askar Mamin.

Foreign partners of KTZ share the view of the primacy of the President of Kazakhstan to the transition of the economy on the path of innovation. The president of the company "GE Transportation" Lorenzo Simonelli pointed out the engines that will be produced in Kazakhstan according to its technical and environmental performance are the best in the world.

• We are pleased to announce a new phase of cooperation between the two sides to produce diesel engines of the new generation - said L.Simonelli. - The product is referred to as the engine of the new generation, because it is very economical in terms of fuel consumption and pollution is not harmful. In the future it will be used on locomotives and delivered to the regions of Kazakhstan and CIS countries, - he said.

Venture to produce diesel locomotive engines is not the first project of JSC “NC “KTZ” co-sponsored with the American and Russian companies. In particular, based on technology "GeneralElectric" a plant for the production of diesel locomotives "Evolution" JSC “Locomotiv ?urastyru zauyty”, opened in 2009 and successfully operates in Astana. Russian company ZAO “Transmashholding” together with the French "AlstomTransport" became technology partners for the new venture of the domestic transport engineering “Electrovoz kurastyru zauyty”.