Skip to main content

Thales and Kapsch to provide systems for Bulgarian railway

In a contract worth US$47 million, Thales and Kapsch are to provide Bulgarian railway infrastructure company NRIC with the electronic signalling and telecommunication technology for the Sofia-Plovdiv railway line, part of the International Rail Corridor IV from Dresden to Istanbul. Kapsch CarrierCom will deliver the GSM-R technology for the project, while Thales will deploy electronic interlocking systems for five stations, including outdoor facilities, ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 1 tracksid
February 8, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
In a contract worth US$47 million, 596 Thales and 81 Kapsch are to provide Bulgarian railway infrastructure company NRIC with the electronic signalling and telecommunication technology for the Sofia-Plovdiv railway line, part of the International Rail Corridor IV from Dresden to Istanbul.  

Kapsch CarrierCom will deliver the GSM-R technology for the project, while Thales will deploy electronic interlocking systems for five stations, including outdoor facilities, ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 1 trackside equipment and CheckPoint solutions (trackside train condition monitoring).  GSM-R access will be set up by Kapsch CarrierCom, including dispatcher extensions, CAB radios and handheld devices.

Thomas Schöpf, chief operating officer of Kapsch CarrierCom commented, “These systems will enable the line to support an increase in train speed and higher train frequencies, significantly increasing line capacity”.

“The Thales centre of competence in Austria for interlocking systems and ETCS combined with  Kapsch’ GSM-R expertise enables us to jointly expand the line as part of the International Rail Corridor IV, where we already have been chosen for the 128 km Plovdiv-Svilengrad line.” says Dr. Alfred Veider, CEO of Thales Austria.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Siemens to modernise railway network signalling in Egypt
    April 11, 2016
    Siemens has been awarded a contract by Egyptian National Railways (ENR) to modernise 260km of railway network in Egypt with advanced technology for signalling, level-crossings and communications. The upgrades, which are part of a national plan to modernise Egypt’s rail system, will increase safety levels and allow the railway’s maximum speed to be raised from 140km/h to 160km/h, boosting throughput of passenger trains and freight services. The routes between Benha and Port Said to the north east and Zag
  • SkyTrain signals more work for Thales
    September 29, 2020
    Contract win extends manufacturer's SelTrac CBTC footprint in Vancouver’s mass transit system
  • Thales scoops Hong Kong signalling contract
    September 5, 2013
    Thales has been awarded a contract by Hong Kong’s metro operator, MTR Corporation, to provide signalling technology for Shatin to Central Link Phase 1 segment of the Hong Kong metro using a communications-based train control (CBTC) system. To provide fully automatic train operation the contract includes the modernisation of the Ma On Shan Line and West Rail Line lines, where Thales previously installed its CBTC solution in 2003/04.
  • CAF-Thales consortium wins Chile metro contract
    December 13, 2013
    In a contract worth US$451.9 million, a consortium of CAF and Thales will supply Santiago’s metro operator with CAF trains controlled by Thales’ communication based train control (CBTC) system for lines 3 and 6 of the metro. The contract also includes a 20-year maintenance agreement. Thales will supply its fully automatic Seltrac CBTC solution, enabling the metro operator to increase the frequency of train services and passenger capacity. This is boosted by CAF’s new energy efficient rail cars, which of