French battery company Saft has won an order to supply its SRX nickel-cadmium starter batteries to a freight rail company in Brazil.
Saft said the order from logistics firm MRS Logistica is for its 64V “low maintenance nickel technology battery systems” to be installed on board 58 16-cylinder diesel locomotives manufactured by GE Transportation.
Saft’s general manger of railways and mobility Milan Sima said: “The railway industry in Brazil is an important growth area for Saft and this important order represents a significant advance in the locomotive sector.”
The SRX batteries are designed and manufactured at Saft’s Bordeaux factory. Deliveries have begun and are scheduled until the end of the first quarter of 2019.
In 2016, Saft was awarded the contract to supply nickel cadmium backup battery systems as a replacement for lead-acid batteries at all 34 of Brazilian power utility CEB (Companhia Energetica de Brasilia) distribution substations serving Brasilia.
