News

Cummins is expanding its portfolio of electric drive technologies with the acquisition of the assets of Brammo, Inc. The firm designs and develops battery packs for use in mobile and stationary drive applications. The purchase of the Brammo battery pack technology will help boost the range of systems and expertise for Cummins. With this deal Cummins intends to become a global leader in the market for electric drives, complementing its range of compression ignition and turbocharging technologies.

Cummins is expanding its portfolio of electric drive technologies with the acquisition of the assets of Brammo, Inc. The firm designs and develops battery packs for use in mobile and stationary drive applications. The purchase of the Brammo battery pack technology will help boost the range of systems and expertise for Cummins. With this deal Cummins intends to become a global leader in the market for electric drives, complementing its range of compression ignition and turbocharging technologies.

Road rebuilding work will be carried out on major road links in Angola’s capital Luanda. The projects are worth US$125.46 million in all and have been approved by the Government of Angola. One contract worth $78.4 million will be handled by the Portuguese contractor Mota Engil and involves repairs and improvements to roads in and around the city.

The tender process will remain open for nine major highway projects in India until the 9th January 2018. These are all for national highway projects, with the work being managed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). The roads will measure a total of 700km and will be constructed in Andra Pradesh State and Gujarat State. These new tolled highways will be constructed and operated under the build-operate-transfer system.

In Ecuador plans are being drawn up for a new bridge connecting Duran with the port city of Guayaquil. The bridge will span the Guayas River and is expected to cost US$800 million to build. The project had been proposed by the former administration but stalled and has now been revived by the current administration. The link would provide a new connection for Highway 40, cutting journey times considerably. The planned location for the new bridge has not so far been clarified.

Construction of the new highway in India connecting Mumbai with Nagpur will commence in early 2018. The highway will be one of the largest construction projects in India as it will measure 701km long, running through 10 districts. It will cost US$7.09 billion to construct, with $5.4 billion of the funding necessary being provided in the shape of a loan from South Korea. The work is expected to take 36 months to carry out with the Maharashtra State Road Development Corp (MSRDC) managing the project.

A series of road projects are planned for India’s Gujarat State, with the work including the construction of a major new bridge. In all the work is expected to cost US$913.5 million. One key portion of the planned work is for the widening the 201.3km stretch of the NH-47 highway running from Ahmedabad to Rajkot to six lanes. The 116.2km NH-51 route from Porbandar to Dwarka will be widened to four lanes. A new cable-stayed bridge will be built from Okha to Beyt Dwarka on the NH-51 route.

Myanmar’s road safety remains a serious cause for concern. Some improvements have been seen in recent times, but more work needs to be done. There were 74,442 road crashes in Myanmar between the start of 2013 and August 2017. These resulted in 122,520 serious injuries and 28,502 fatalities according to data from the Myanmar Police Force. From January to August 2017, there were 12,250 crashes and 3,556 road fatalities, with 49% of the crashes involving motorcycles.

The Yarga to Kalewa road link connecting Myanmar and India is set for a major upgrade, following discussions between the two nations. The project will be managed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), which will handle the role of as Technical Executing Agency. The work is expected to cost US$181.5 million and the project forms part of a wider plan to improve road connections between India, Myanmar and Thailand.

Construction will commence on the new connection from Kosovo’s capital Pristina to Nis in Serbia. The first stretch of the highway to be built will be the 77km section from Nis to Merdare in Serbia. The project is expected to cost €212 million, with a portion of the funding at least being provided by the European Investment Bank (EIB). Plans have yet to be announced for the stretch running from Serbia’s border with Kosovo to Pristina. Once complete this route will provide new links from Serbia to Albania an

The Italian firm ANAS which manages much of the country’s network is setting out a major programme for road investment. In all €29.5 billion will be spent on upgrading Italian roads managed by ANAs over the next five years. This budget includes the €23.4 billion for new civil engineering work. Of the €23.4 billion, €8.4 billion is aimed at the completion of existing sections of road while €10.5 billion is for maintenance work or safety upgrades.

The Tavrida Federal highway that will connect with the Kerch Strait Bridge in Russia has a projected cost of US$2.92 billion. The road will run through Kerch, Feodosia, Simferopol, Bakhchisarai, and Sevastopol and will measure 277km long. The project is being handled by contractor VAD Company.

A large chunk of the funding required for the improved road connection between Kenya and Tanzania has now been sourced. The African Development Bank (AfDB) will provide US$300 million of the financing required for the project. However the remaining $485 million of funding necessary still remains to be secured.