Construction, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Legislation, Railways, Transport

Photo: railbaltica.org

The depot, to be called Ulemiste Depot, is meant for servicing 1,435 mm gauge passenger service rolling stock, Rail Baltic Estonia announced on Monday.

While the depot would provide repair and maintenance services primarily for the rolling stock whose end station is the Ulemiste joint terminal of Rail Baltic, it must be prepared to provide repair and maintenance services also for the rest of the Rail Baltic train stock. 

The depot would have space for seven trains at a time.

According to the operating plan, 26 fast trains and 16 regional trains would be moving on the infrastructure of Rail Baltic.

The CEO of Rail Baltic Estonia, Tonu Grunberg, said that the development, designing and construction of facilities related to Rail Baltic is set to give a significant boost to railway related competence in Estonia.

"The rolling stock depot, where maintenance and repair work will be performed on trains and wagons, will definitely emerge as an important center of know-how of the field of railway in Estonia," Grunberg said.

The depot is to employ a workforce of 60 to 120 people.

The CEO of Rail Baltic Estonia said he hopes that positive developments in the railway sector will give a major boost for the educational establishments of the Baltic countries to engage more in the training of engineers in the fields of railway infrastructure and railway rolling stock, as there will be ever greater demand for their skills in the future. The facilities of the depot must also enable the performance of works such as wastewater removal, replenishing of fresh water stocks, washing of trains, removal of ice in the winter, and cleaning of the interiors of trains. The design must include seven pairs of tracks that are necessary for the parking of trains. The designing of the rolling stock depot is to take place in several stages and construction works are planned to start in the first half of 2022. 

The deadline of submissions in the tender is Oct. 19.