German railway company Deutsche Bahn has asked rolling stock manufacturers Siemens and Bombardier to fix quality issues with its newly arrived fleet of ICE 4 high-speed trains.
In a statement, the German firm said that some of the train carriage frames do not fulfil quality requirements.
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Following the identification of the issue, the company has also suspended the procurement of additional ICE 4 trains, Reuters reported citing Deutsche Bahn statement.
The two rolling stock manufacturers also confirmed the same as Bombardier, a subcontractor on the ICE-4 project stated that it has identified defects with the welds on the carriage bodies.
However, Siemens and Bombardier said that the issue with the frames does not threaten operational safety. They also added that the issue has been fixed on trains currently under production.
Siemens Mobility is the general contractor to deliver the ICE-4 trains to Deutsche Bahn, while Bombardier Transportation is responsible for supplying other associated equipment, including the carriage bodies.
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By GlobalDataIn another development, Deutsche Bahn is reportedly working with Deutsche Bank and Citi to devise strategies on the potential divestment of its UK-based wholly-owned subsidiary Arriva.
The banks and the German firm declined to comment on the reports.
The divestment is expected to be worth more than $3.37bn and will help Deutsche Bahn to lower its debt, as well as provide Arriva with additional scope for growth.
Currently, Arriva manages bus and train services across 14 countries in Europe. Last year, the company generated total revenues of €5.44bn ($6.11bn).
