Voestalpine Railway Systems, a subsidiary of Austrian steelmaker Voestalpine AG, has announced that it has secured framework contracts worth approximately €470 million for the Rail Baltica project.
According to the company, the agreements represent the largest framework contracts portfolio in its history and cover the supply of high-tech turnouts and digital monitoring systems for the cross-border railway corridor connecting Northern and Central Europe.
Up to 1,000 turnouts to be supplied
Under the contracts, Voestalpine Railway Systems will deliver up to 1,000 high-speed and standard turnouts, including integrated digital monitoring technology, for the fully electrified railway network. Production will take place at the company’s facilities in Lithuania and Latvia, while the first prototype deliveries are scheduled for 2027. The high-speed turnouts are designed for train speeds of up to 300 km/h.
Digital monitoring to support predictive maintenance
The turnouts will be equipped with digital diagnostic systems intended to simplify maintenance activities and reduce the risk of operational disruptions.
According to the company, each high-speed turnout can be fitted with around 40 sensors that continuously collect operational and environmental data, including weather conditions and turnout performance. The data will be transmitted in real time to analysis software, enabling maintenance requirements to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Rail Baltica is one of Europe’s largest railway infrastructure projects and aims to integrate the Baltic states into the trans-European rail network through a high-speed rail connection between Helsinki and Warsaw. The project involves Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, while Finland will be indirectly connected through the transport corridor.
