Guardian spin on $1.8 Billion Contract
Bombardier UK wins £1bn Crossrail contract
Bombadier had warned that failure to win the Crossrail contract could mean the closure of the Derby factory and the loss of up to 1,500 jobs. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Bombardier UK has fought off competition from foreign bidders to win the £1bn contract to build trains for London's Crossrail project.
Britain's only train builder, based in Derby, beat Japan's Hitachi and CAF of Spain to supply 65 trains for the line. Bombardier – the British arm of the Canadian aerospace and transport manufacturer – had warned that missing out on the contract could cause the factory, which employs 1,500 workers, to close.
The deal, which also includes building a new depot, will support 760 UK manufacturing jobs and 80 apprenticeships. It will keep an estimated 74% of the contract spend in the UK.
Transport for London (TfL) and the Department for Transport announced the politically charged decision on Thursday morning.
Bombardier missed out on the UK's last big train contract to build rolling stock for the upgrade to London's Thameslink network. The £1.6bn commission went to Germany's Siemens in 2011, prompting Bombardier to cut 1,200 jobs at its plant."
Regards