The National Transport Authority (NTA) has directed Irish Rail to look at seeking compensation from train manufacturers arising from problems that will delay by a year or more the introduction of a new rail fleet to boost capacity on the network.
The NTA said problems with the braking system on the new trains emerged during testing. This is in addition to previously flagged issues with battery packs.
The NTA told Fine Gael TD Grace Boland, in reply to a parliamentary question originally tabled to Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien, that the introduction of the new trains on the Dublin-Drogheda line had been pushed back from next year to the second quarter of 2027.
This will have a knock-on delay on plans to increase capacity elsewhere on the network, as it had been envisaged that carriages used on the northern line would be deployed around the State.
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Ms Boland asked the Minister whether the State would receive credit or compensation arising from the delays,
NTA interim chief executive Hugh Creegan said the framework contract governing the fleet acquisition contains provisions for the “levying of liquidated damages” by Irish Rail for delays in delivery due to the fault of the fleet manufacturer. He said he had discussions with Irish Rail some weeks ago about this and instructed the body to “examine the applicability and application of these contractual provisions”.
Ms Boland said the braking system issue and the replacement of battery packs represent significant technical failures, not minor adjustments.
“This is not a supply chain issue. It is a major performance breakdown that has pushed delivery well into 2027,” she said.
Mr Creegan said two train sets under the new fleet order have been delivered to Irish Rail and extensive testing has been under way. The testing has uncovered some “performance issues”, including with the design of the braking system, that the manufacturer needs to address.
“While the battery packs passed the relevant tests here in Ireland, a similar type [of] battery pack failed some tests in Melbourne, Australia, as part of an unconnected train order. Arising from that separate issue, the battery manufacturer made the decision to replace the battery packs with a revised design of battery,“ said Mr Creegan.
“Given the manufacturing time associated with these upgraded batteries, a significant delay to the completion of the train supply order has arisen.”
Mr Creegan added that the costs would be “borne by the manufacturer”.
Ms Boland said it is right that all repair and redesign costs will be paid for by the manufacturer. However, she said, this “does not make up for the years of lost capacity on the Northern commuter line, which is one of the fastest growing commuter corridors in the State”.
She said the contract’s “liquidated damages” provision means the State can apply financial penalties when a supplier fails to meet agreed deadlines. “Taxpayers expect the State to enforce the contract fully when obligations are not met,” she said.
“The State may not have to pay for fixing the defects, but the opportunity cost for passengers is enormous,” she added.
The NTA said the total cost of the two orders for trains made so far as part of the new fleet programme was approximately €500 million.
It said the initial order was to the value of approximately €320 million including the detailed design and production phase, with the subsequent order costing approximately €180 million.
Irish Rail has ordered about 185 new rail carriages in total as part of the fleet order.
