Angel Trains is proud to announce the procurement of 14 new 5-car Hitachi Class 80x trainsets, which will be leased by FirstGroup for use on its recently secured London to Carmarthen and other Open Access routes.
This significant £250m investment has been agreed in partnership with FirstGroup and Hitachi Rail in less than three months from initiation to signing and the speed at which this transaction has been concluded reflects one of the significant advantages that the private sector continues to offer the industry.
The delivery of these new state-of-the-art trains will secure jobs at Hitachi’s Newton Aycliffe facility where the vehicles will be assembled, helping to retain critical skills and drive growth within the local economy.
The new trains will be a combination of electric and bi-mode (electric diesel) with the capability to subsequently be converted to battery, aligning with our strategy to support the de-carbonisation of rail in a sustainable manner.
This announcement underpins our continued commitment to investing in the UK rail manufacturing and supply chain and we look forward to continuing to play a leading role in driving sustainable economic growth within rail and the regions it supports.