Plane and train maker Bombardier Inc on Friday said it is considering an automated people mover (APM) assembly factory in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province.

The company said the Zhuhai plant would be the company's first APM facility outside of North America.

APMs are taxi-like systems that mainly serve small areas like airports, downtown districts or theme parks. Larger and more complex APM systems have the characteristics of a mass transit system.

Bombardier is currently involved in the bidding process for the first stage of the Macao Light Rapid Transit (LRT) project along with its partner China Road and Bridge Corporation, said Zhang Jianwei, president, Bombardier China.

The company will start work on the plant after it wins the contract. All the trains in the Macao LRT will make use of the APM facility in Zhuhai, said Bombardier.

Work on the Macao light railway is expected to start next year after the bid winner is named towards the end of the year. The cost of the first phase of the projects is estimated at US$940 million.

Bombardier has already supplied the Beijing Capital International Airport with the Innovia APM system for the new international Terminal 3. It is also supplying an urban mass transit APM that will connect the two business districts of Guangzhou. Currently the APM systems are manufactured by Bombardier at its North American factories.

The company anticipates huge growth in China as the nation is planning more urban rail transit systems. Bombardier became the first rail equipment supplier to deliver 1,000 metro cars in Chinese market. The joint venture, Changchun Bombardier Railway Vehicles Co Ltd, is focused on the production of metro cars.

By the end of 2010, there will be 55 urban rail lines in China spread over 1,500 kilometers. That in turn, will also need at least 6,000 vehicles.

In the urban rail sector, a new wave of mass urban rail transit construction is set to start soon. By 2015, 19 Chinese cities plan to build more than 70 metro rail lines, while the urban rail networks in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are currently expanding at a rate of 30 to 50 kilometers per year.

"We are seeking all kinds of opportunities in the country and plan to expand cooperation with Chinese partners in both rail equipment and aircraft manufacturing industries," said Zhang.

(China Daily August 21, 2010)