VANCOUVER, Nov. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- RailPower Technologies Corp. (TSX: P) announced today that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding ('MOU') with Mitsui Bussan Transportation System Co., Ltd ('Mitsui') to explore the market potential for RailPower's hybrid locomotive technology with Japan Freight Railway Company ('JRF').
RailPower President and CEO, Jim Maier, said, "Japan is not dissimilar to other areas of the world where low horsepower locomotives have become old and the industry is facing tightening restrictions on emissions.
"Mitsui and JRF visited one of our prime manufacturing sites last month and also one of our main customers and the feedback has been very positive. On that basis, we have formalised the relationship through a Memorandum of Understanding to take matters to the next stage whereby JRF's general requirements and specifications can be detailed."
Mitsui will not only conduct a study on the applicability of the technology for JRF but also examine other potential users and applications in Japan.
Maier said that, as with other international markets, should there prove to be a potentially viable market for the technology then a suitable manufacturing partner would be engaged. "We remain committed to our outsourced manufacturing business model. It provides us with the greatest degree of flexibility for manufacturing combined with minimising overheads and enabling us to focus on our core technologies," concluded Maier.
Mitsui is a 100% subsidiary of Mitsui & Co., Ltd, specializing in railway and transportation related business in Japan. Mitsui & Co., Ltd is one of the biggest Japanese Trading companies, having a history of over 100 years with a turn-over of approximately US$1,150 billion (2004).
Mitsui is one of the main players in the railway and transportation field in Japan. Mitsui has been working for many cities in Japan for the completion of urban transportation systems for the last 40 years by utilizing monorail technology. Mitsui is also the leading company working for the importation of European/American advance technology for railway operators in Japan.
Japan Freight Railway was formed in 1987 as a railway freight company covering the whole of Japan as part of the privatization of Japan National Railway. In pursuing its activities, JRF employs its own fleet of 562 electric locomotives and 244 diesel locomotives, as well as over 14,000 railcars.
JRF is recognized in Japan for the important environmental benefits it creates by facilitating a shift in freight transport from trucks to railways and maritime vessels, which have a lighter burden on the environment.
RailPower (TSX: P), (http://www.railpower.com/) a leader in specialized energy technology systems for the transportation and power generation industries, is headquartered in North Vancouver, BC. Its US engineering office is in Erie, Pennsylvania.
© 2005 PR Newswire
