Renfe signed up to support MTR’s West Coast bid

MTR has joined forces with Spanish state operator Renfe on its West Coast Partnership (WCP) bid.

The Spanish company has been appointed as a sub-contractor, and will seek to use its expertise in introducing new high-speed lines into traffic. Renfe is currently the partner in the development of a new high-speed line in Texas.

The successful winner of the WCP franchise will operate HS2 for the first four years of its existence. The partnership also includes GSRC, which operates high-speed lines in China.

“We have sought to bring the best and most up-to-date high speed expertise into our bid - we believe Renfe has that,” said Jeremy Long, CEO - MTR, European Business.

“With Europe’s largest highspeed network and significant expansion plans, Renfe has unrivalled knowledge of how to bring new high-speed lines into service in Europe.”

Manel Villalante, Strategy General Manager of Renfe, said: “With our expanding network in Spain and partnerships elsewhere in the world, this shows Renfe’s ambitions to remain a leader in high speed rail.”

Renfe claims 36 million passengers used its high-speed services in 2017, and that the average commercial speed of its services in its native Spain is 138mph, faster than in Japan and France.