China to pitch high-speed trains to California | Reuters

SHANGHAI State-backed http://privatetutoring.us/ China CNR Corporation is making a pitch to sellits high-speed trains to California, signaling China's growing export ambitions for such technologyafter building the world's longest network in just seven years.

It marks the first concrete attempt by China to sell high-speed locomotives abroad and establishitself as a credible rival to sector leaders such as Germany's Siemens, Canada's Bombardier andJapan's Kawasaki.

CNR, its unit Tangshan Railway and U.S.-based SunGroup USA are submitting an expression ofinterest to California's $68 billion high-speed rail project for a contract to supply up to 95 trains thatcan travel as fast as 354 kilometers per hour (221 miles per hour), SunGroup told Reuters.

"We believe that high-speed rail is something that China does very well, and it's a product that wecan export across the world," SunGroup spokesman Jonathan Sun said in a phone interview, addingthat SunGroup, CNR and Tangshan Railway had been working together for four years.

Manufacturers are expected to send in expressions of interest by Oct. 22 to the California HighSpeed Railway Authority, which will later issue formal requests for proposals. About a dozen firmsfrom places such as Japan and Spain are expected to compete, it said.

California has been candid about its desire for Chinese investment in the 800-mile-long (1,287kilometers) line from Los Angeles to San Francisco; U.S. media reports said governor Jerry Brownmet Chinese rail officials in April last year, including those from Tangshan Railway, to discuss theproject.

No estimates for the contract's value have been published, but in its 2014 business plan theCalifornia High Speed Railway Authority estimated each trainset would cost $45 million, based on apurchase of 70 vehicles.

"We haven't officially gone out to bid yet. This is us saying to the industry that we need trainsets.They have to meet these standards. We're asking, 'Are you interested in learning more, and do youthink you could do this for us?'" said Lisa Marie Alley, deputy director of public affairs at the High-Speed Rail Authority.

LOFTY AMBITIONS

China has made no secret of its desire to export its high-speed technology abroad, having built over12,000 kilometers of track at home in less than a decade. CNR and CSR Corp are China's largestlocomotive makers, while China Railway Construction and China Railway Group build track.

The country has helped or indicated its interest to build thousands of kilometers of high-speed trackin countries such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, though it has yet to sell a high-speed trainabroad. Premier Li Keqiang - dubbed by local media as China's high-speed rail salesman - has led adrive to promote its technology in Thailand, Britain, Russia and India.

A Chinese consortium was the only competitor to present a bid for a tender to build a 210-km high-speed rail line in Mexico, the Mexican government said last week.

"The Chinese market right now is booming, and there's a very high level of investment, but five, 10years down the road will it still be at this level? We don't know. So it makes sense for thesecompanies to want to diversify their revenue streams," Barclays analyst Yang Song said.

The sector's image was, however, marred by a 2011 collision between two high-speed trains nearWenzhou in Zhejiang province that killed 40 people and was later blamed on design flaws.

Project details published on SunGroup's website show the consortium is putting forward theCRH380BL train, a model used on the Beijing-Shanghai line, which can travel up to 380 kph.

Sun said an initial order would probably be about http://www.tutor.com/tutor-search?s=math 18-20trains and that they would open a factory to make the trains in California if they won the bid, asrequired by U.S. law.

The consortium also intends to bid for the next available contracts to build track sections of the line.A group led by Tutor Perini is building the first segment, while consortiums that include Dragadosand Samsung are bidding for the next construction package.

"In the future we want to be involved in all aspects of the project," Sun said. "Because byundertaking a package you can showcase the true value of the high-speed technology that China hascreated and manufactured."

(Additional Reporting by Robin Respaut in SAN FRANCISCO; Editing by Will Waterman)