Rome, 14 July 2016
The collaboration between the FS Italiane Group and Iran is in full swing.
The CEO of FS Italiane, Renato Mazzoncini, and Iran’s Deputy Roads & Urban Development Minister, Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan, met today in Rome as part of the Italy-Iran Joint Technical Committee, which was also attended by both countries’ Ministers for Infrastructure and Transport Graziano Delrio and Abbas Ahmad Akhoundi.
Messrs Kashian and Mazzoncini signed a Joint Declaration, focusing on this cooperation and recognising its excellent progress: they noted the mutual efforts of FS and RAI (the Iranian Railway) in ensuring that current projects progressed as best as possible. In particular, the Iranian government said it was fully satisfied with FS’s work as the General Contractor, meeting deadlines, proving its professionalism and efficiency and offering suitable solutions to meet the needs of Iranian railways.
In terms of HS lines, FS will present a technical-economic proposal by August for the creation of the Qom-Arak line. RAI will also then notify FS of any technical specifications for the Tehran-Hamedan line.
By the end of the month, the Italian Railway will also submit a bid for the organisation of 13 training courses for RAI staff. While in November, RAI is expected to announce the technical specifications for the design and construction of the rolling stock test centre; FS has already confirmed that it is fully available to provide support with the train purchase scheme, by offering technical assistance for the purchase of 22 HS trains and 500 passenger carriages.
FS’s recommendations include the adoption of interoperability standards with an integrated approach that not only takes into account the trains but also the network.
This meeting follows the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on 09 February 2016 and the Framework Cooperation Agreement on 12 April 2016.