The first high-speed trains have arrived in Indonesia, marking the first time Chinese-made high-speed trains have reached an export destination. The total cost will not be small: 8 billion dollars for 142 km, but the travel time between Jakarta and Bandung will be only 36 minutes, compared to more than 195 minutes now.

Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world with 275 million inhabitants. The rail network is not very developed, and the fastest sections have an average speed of 80 km/h.

Trains now run over 3 hours 15 minutes for the 173 km between Jakarta and Bandung. On the new, more direct high-speed railway, the length will be 142 km, and the trip will take 36 to 45 minutes, depending on the number of stops.

The high-speed railway is 90% ready, 16 km out of 142 km will run through tunnels. The railway is built according to Chinese standards, and the maximum possible speed is 350 km/h. Although at first it will definitely be smaller for safety reasons.

11 electric trains with 600 seats each will be delivered by the Chinese company CRRC Qingdao Sifang by 2023. The supply contract was signed in April 2017 for $370 million.

The total cost of this railway is more than 8 billion dollars, although initial estimates indicated 6 billion dollars. Dynamic tests should begin in November, and passenger trains will run from June 2023 at best.

The railway was built by a consortium in which Indonesian companies have 60% of shares and Chinese companies have 40%. Initially, it was believed that the line could be ready in 2019, but technical problems arose and the expropriation took a long time.

Sources: International Railway Journal, Xinhua, Railway-Techology.com, China Daily