With the Railways planning to deploy more than one lakh wagons in the coming years, the potential annual CO2 reduction could be to the tune of over 25 lakh tonne, with 15 - 20% shift to aluminium wagons, the Hindalco statement said.
New Delhi: Hindalco on Sunday launched India’s first all-aluminium freight rail rakes, helping fast-track the country’s ambitious plan to modernise freight transportation and enable large carbon savings for Indian Railways.
Union minister for railways Ashwini Vaishnaw inaugurated the rake, “61 BOBRNALHSM1", at Bhubaneswar railway station, Odisha.
“This is a dedicated effort for Make in India program as it has been fully designed and developed indigenously in collaboration with RDSO, Hindalco and Besco Wagon," said a statement from the ministry of railways.
Further, tare weight, the weight of an empty vehicle or container, of the aluminium is 3.25 tonne lower than that of steel.
Flagging off the new 61-wagon rake from Bhubaneswar station, which will carry coal for Hindalco’s Aditya Smelter in Lapanga, Odisha, Ashwini Vaishnaw, the union minister of railways said: “These wagons save 14,500 tonne of CO2 emissions, have more carrying capacity, consume less energy and are corrosion-resistant. They are 100% recyclable and even after 30 years, they will be as good as new. These aluminium wagons will enable us to achieve our climate goals.“
With the Railways planning to deploy more than one lakh wagons in the coming years, the potential annual CO2 reduction could be to the tune of over 25 lakh tonne, with 15 - 20% shift to aluminium wagons, the Hindalco statement said.
Satish Pai, managing director, Hindalco Industries said: “The launch of the India’s first aluminium freight rake is a testimony to our capability and commitment to offer smart and sustainable solutions for nation building. Hindalco is steadfast in bringing together the best of global technologies with local resources to make Indian Railways’ logistics more efficient and contribute to the vision of an Atmanirbhar Bharat."
The freight sector in India is expected to grow at more than 7% CAGR to 15-billion tonne by 2050, with the energy-efficient and eco-friendly railways expected to notably increase its volume share from the current 18%.
Hindalco is also planning to participate in manufacturing of aluminium coaches for high-speed passenger trains. Aluminium trains command a lion’s share in the United States, Europe and Japan because of attributes such as sleek, aerodynamic designs and their ability to tilt at high speeds without going off the rails.
Aluminium is the preferred choice for metro trains worldwide for their durability and most importantly – passenger safety, as it has improved crashworthiness or superior crash absorption capability. Indian Railways has already announced its plans to make aluminium-bodied Vande Bharat train sets.
Download the Mint app and read premium stories
Log in to our website to save your bookmarks. It'll just take a moment.
You are just one step away from creating your watchlist!
Oops! Looks like you have exceeded the limit to bookmark the image. Remove some to bookmark this image.
Your session has expired, please login again.
You are now subscribed to our newsletters. In case you can’t find any email from our side, please check the spam folder.
This is a subscriber only feature Subscribe Now to get daily updates on WhatsApp