Bombardier and Hitachi partner on joint bid for £2.75bn HS2 contract

The Canadian transport manufacturer, Bombardier, has submitted a joint bid with the Japanese conglomerate, Hitachi, to build trains for the UK’s High Speed Two (HS2) project.

The £2.75bn (US$3.63) will see the winning bid design, build, and maintain a minimum of 54 high-speed trains for Phase 1, Sky News reported.

So far, the HS2 has received five bids for the contract – Alstom Transport, Bombardier and Hitachi, Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF), Patentes Talgo, and Siemens. The winning bid will be announced by HS2 by the end of 2019.

“HS2 will form the backbone of Britain’s future rail network and is a major investment in our future prosperity,” stated Karen Boswell, Hitachi Rail’s Managing Director.

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“By joining together in partnership with Bombardier, we will draw on a huge wealth of UK experience and the best in modern technology – including our pioneering ‘bullet train’ experience.”

“Our aim is to deliver a new British icon that will be recognised around the world - a Spitfire for the British railway,” she added, according to Sky News.

“We will combine both companies' global high-speed expertise with unrivalled British experience, and help generate skills and prosperity across a number of UK regions,” noted Richard Hunter, UK Managing Director of Bombardier, claims Sky News.