The French energy and transport infrastructure giant Alstom continues to beef up its bid for the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway project, according to a senior company official.

"We are well positioned to vie for the bid," Lu Yuebing, vice president of Alstom China Ltd, told China Daily at the sideline of the 2004 Conference of the China International Institute of Multinational Corporations over the weekend.

"We are confident of winning the deal," he added, although the government has currently suspended its commitment to the US$12 billion project.

Lu's confidence was largely based on Alstom's technological edge.

"We have strong confidence about our TGV technology," he said.

The company is capable of providing trains carrying 1,000 passengers with a speed of 350 kilometres per hour, Lu said.

More importantly, he said, Alstom is willing to transfer its technologies to China, which could give Alstom a huge advantage.

"We have a fine record of the transfer of core technologies," he said, "I strongly recommend Chinese policy-makers visit South Korea to see the Korea Train eXpress (KTX)."

KTX, which uses TGV technology, was a good example of Alstom's record. The project has helped Korean companies to develop their own innovations on the basis of Alstom's technology, he said.

Along with Alstom, companies from Germany, headed by Siemens, and Japan, headed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industry, are competing for the 1,300-kilometre-long railway project.

In terms of technology, Japanese Shinkansen and German ICE are also competing with the TGV. Together, they are the world's leaders in high-speed rail.

Lu also agrees that the result of the bid will be subject to a combination of factors such as technological competitiveness and political relations between nations.

Meanwhile, he expressed concern about the slow process of the Beijing-Shanghai railway bid.

He added he understood the government's cautiousness about committing to such a large and heavily-reported project.

Alstom is also preparing to bid for the railway acceleration project, expecting that the company's dedication to this smaller deal will be seen favorably by the Ministry of Railway for the high-speed project, Lu told China Daily.

The acceleration project is widely seen as a prelude to the big deal of the Beijing-Shanghai railway bid.

German and Japanese companies also are considering participation in the acceleration bid.

The winner will help China raise its train speed on five major existing railway lines to 200 kilometres per hour.

The five train lines include one between Beijing and Shenyang, Northeast China's Liaoning Province, and another to connect Qingdao and Jinan in East China's Shandong Province.

"I believe the result of the bid will be announced soon," Lu said. "We are confident of standing out."

(China Daily July 12, 2004)