Stadler builds world's 'most powerful' train

Swiss manufacturer Stadler Rail unveiled on Wednesday a train 50 percent more powerful than its competitors, earning it a multi-million franc deal with a Brazilian buyer. Described by Stadler as "by far the largest and most powerful rack-and-pinion locomotive ever built", a total of seven engines have been ordered by Brazilian purchaser MRS Logistica at a cost of 60 million Swiss francs (48 million euros, $62 million).
The electric trains - each weighing nearly 120 tonnes and measuring 18.7 metres (20.5 yards) - are to be put to work carrying iron ore between Sao Paolo and Santos, the largest port in South America. Capable of generating up to 5,000kW, the locomotives will be coupled together and tasked with pulling loads of up to 850 tonnes up slopes with a 10.4 percent gradient. That makes them 50 percent more powerful than those currently in use, Stadler said in a statement. Once finished in the next few weeks, the first two trains will be taken to Basel and transported to Brazil via the Belgian port of Antwerp.