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The Rail and Maritime Transport Union says it’s watching very closely to see whether KiwiRail honours the local involvement pledge it made during the tender process for Auckland’s new electric trains.
KiwiRail’s May 2010 tender document encouraged firms to ally themselves with New Zealand subcontractors or suppliers and “include as much New Zealand content and resources in the design, construction, delivery, testing, maintenance and support of the EMUs as is appropriate.”
“We have always wanted these trains to be built in Dunedin and Lower Hutt but local involvement provisions from the lead supplier was the next best option. It is essential that this is rigorously pursued by KiwiRail,” said the union’s general secretary Wayne Butson.
KiwiRail is about to announce a decision on who will win the tender for Auckland’s electric trains and China North Rail is tipped as favourite.
Labour last night called on the Prime Minister to instruct KiwiRail to defer any decisions on who will win the bid to build electric trains for Auckland because of questions raised over lobbying for the tender in China. Mr Key says it’s a matter for the KiwiRail board.
Auckland's getting ready for electric trains but when will we get them?
The union’s Wayne Butson says several KiwiRail purchasing decisions had gone against the local workforce, and it was time for government to require stronger local content provisions from KiwiRail’s procurement programme.
“Rail workers were gutted when KiwiRail announced last May that New Zealand workshops would not be building the Electric Multiple Units for Auckland. This was despite a comprehensive BERL report for Chambers of Commerce, unions and local government, proving the case for a local build. This followed 20 Diesel Locomotives for the North Island being built in China, and making matters worse, the job for 300 new container flat top wagons last December also went to an overseas firm. When Steven Joyce rejected the BERL report on the Close Up programme last year, he held out hope that the 300 wagons would be built locally.”
The Minister said: ‘There will be lots of work for these guys, there’s no doubt about that, because they do a lot of things well and there’s a big rolling stock replenishment and replacement exercise that’s coming down the pipeline (Steven Joyce, Close Up, May 3 2010)’
“Despite this, the job went overseas, just like the Electric Multiple Units. Steven Joyce’s reassurances became worthless to the Dunedin and Lower Hutt workforce,” Wayne Butson said.
“It’s not good enough for Steven Joyce and John Key to wash their hands of these decisions. They do have options open to them. As KiwiRail’s shareholders, they need to put in place stronger local procurement requirements. Without them we will see more decisions that go against local workers, local industry development, and the export potential that that involves.”
2 Comments
It appears the decision on the contract won’t be till September, that was the response from Jim Quinn to Cam Pitches from the CBT.
http://www.bettertransport.org.nz/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2677&start=20#p80560
Meaning they wont be built until next year? Also meaning we don’t have a hope in hell of having electric trains running in 2013.