SPAIN, COUNTRY OF TESTS

As horses in their boxes, are the different prototypes of the AVE train which the companies state that they have to go to the tender of the AVE Madrid-Barcelone-Frontier. The comparison isn't vain; this is a run where the bets are very high and, in someone, it could be involved the called "family fortune".

In this way, there are some favourite enterprises. In one side, Talgo and ADtranz have just announced that they have a high speed train with the needs of the tender (350 km/h) on February of the year 2000. Alstom, in the other side, emphasizes that it will be able to go to the tender with a model in tune with the project. Siemens walks its ICE3 and asserts its full marketability. That is to say that all have their own trains.

The resource of the patriotism also is used into the corridors. From Talgo it is known that it is an enterprise completly Spanish and its partner ADtranz would benefit logically enough. Alstom have an important implantation in the Spanish railway industry thanks to its buyings and Siemens emphasizes -as has said its Spanish president, Eduardo Montes- that its factory in Cornella (Barcelone) will make the most of the parts for its model. It is clear that to sell the AVE in Spain it is necessary to be Spanish.

And not onnly Spain is important because of the enormous project and its 117,000 millions of pesetas for trains. The future opportunities of market are in gear, because what is going to happen with the product image of those ones which would sell the model? All the experts indicate that the railway future in the world has to do with the high speed and its possibilities. In this case of the Spanish project its characteristics in relation to the design, distances and speeds seem prototypes in relation to the specifications of the trains which will travel on the high speed lines next years. The contract implies an important consequence: to obstruct this important market to those companies which couldn't sell their trains to the Spanish people.

Ten years ago, the tender for the AVE Madrid-Seville had similar results. In the margin of those which really competed at that time they obtained something (the Japanese and Italian proposals were only "a toast to the sun"...), there isn't any doubt that the great winner was Alstom (in this way it was called at that time) and its TGV Atlantique, without any doubt the only European train which could offer a long and successful experience in use.

Siemens couldn't win with its ICE at that time, because its expensive price and becuse it was enough tested. Talgo, whose possible offer was waited until the last minute, couldn't obtain the traction, which couldn't only give its competitors in the tender. Today the panorama is much free and all seem to indicate that the battle will be competed and difficult the labour of evaluating the different offers.