MONTREAL — While Bombardier remains in “active talks” with French-based Alstom over a merger of the companies’ rail equipment manufacturing, the Canadian firm has also approached Japan’s Hitachi about a possible deal, Reuters reports.
The Bombardier-Alstom talks were reported earlier this week by Bloomberg [see “Report: Bombardier, Alstom discussing combining rail units,” Trains News Wire, Jan. 22, 2020].
The manufacturing consolidation seeks to combat competition from China’s state-supported CRRC, the world’s largest manufacturer or rail equipment. A proposed Alstom-Siemens merger was blocked last year by regulators in the European Union. The Reuters report says Bombardier also approached Siemens, as well as a Chinese firm, but those options “failed to gain traction.”
This situation was initiated by the disinvestment of transit and passenger rail in the U.S. and Canada. At one time Pullman, Budd, and St. Louis Car were significant players. We lost all the employment and technology beginning in the 70’s. This is what we get.
There is room for Charity Search Engine.
CRRC is in itself a merger of two large Chinese companies. We’re heading toward a duopoly in passenger cars just as in passenger aircraft.
Who would have thought it a generation ago? It takes a merger of the French, Canadians, Germans, Italians and Japanese to compete with China. (America doesn’t even figure into the equation.) Something here isn’t quite as it should be.
Bombardier as a whole has been hurting. CDN Govt and Quebec bailed them on the C Series just before giving Airbus the deal of the century and moving production to Mobile. And now the mobility division can’t get enough work to support CDN operations because CRRC is not afraid to make a US investment (Chicago) to comply with the “USA Made” mandate.
Since Alstom already has Hornell NY, a merger with them is strategic for US business.