Wednesday the 18th of October, 2023, saw French rail operator SNCF Voyageurs and global leader in smart and sustainable mobility, Alstom, present the first battery-powered train of an order of five, at the Rencontres Nationales du Transport Public in Clermont Ferrand.

The innovative large-scale project sees 5 French Regional Transport Authorities work with SNCF Voyageurs and Alstom, to develop battery-powered trains in a bid to lower CO2 emissions on non-electrified lines.

The authorities taking part are:

• Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
• Hauts-de-France
• Nouvelle-Aquitaine
• Occitanie Pyrénées-Méditerranée
• Sud Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

Five dual-mode electric/diesel trains, some of which have been in service for around 20 years, are being modified seeing the diesel engines removed and replaced with batteries in order to make them 100% electric.

Once in operation, the trains which will support a reduction in CO2 emissions, bringing a more environmentally friendly approach that can run on both electrified and non-electrified lines for a further 20 years.

The Nouvelle-Aquitaine region entrusted the first train set to Alstom at its Crespin site and saw static and dynamic development stages carried out up to 60km/h, testing the train’s operation and battery traction mode and revealing that the battery charging and discharging system are working correctly.

Further testing will now be carried out at Centre d’essais ferroviaires at Bar-le-Duc, with validation and certification tests at up to 160 km/h. This period of testing will also see the vehicle’s new traction modes put to the test prior to validation for an array of route simulation models across varying conditions, mirroring what it will face in real service.

The final stage of testing is set to take place in December 2023 and January 2024 will see the train out and about on the French National Railway Network in order to make sure that it is fully compatible with French infrastructure. Following this, SNCF Voyageurs will complete the admission file ahead of submission to the Etablissement Public de Sécurité Ferroviaire in order to obtain the relevant authorisations for commercial service.

It is hoped that the new so-called “AGC Batteries” model of regional train could be in service as early as December 2024, across the regions taking part in an initial experimental period, after which, the technology is hoped to be rolled out on a broader scale.

The investment for this project is €40.2 million and includes the pre-production run of the five train sets. The funding is made up of each of the five regions investing €5.7 million each, along with €5.5 million by Alstom and €6 million by SNCF.

Jean-Baptiste Eyméoud, President of Alstom France, said:

“Decarbonising mobility is at the heart of Alstom’s strategy, and the battery solution completes our range of relevant solutions, along with hydrogen and hybridisation, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from mobility.”

“In this respect, we are proud to be able to present the first battery-powered TER, developed in collaboration with SNCF Voyageurs and with the support of the five partner Regions”.