On May 9, China’s first new smart heavy-duty electric locomotive, jointly developed by CHN Energy Shuozhou-Huanghua Railway Company and CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive Co., Ltd., officially rolled off the production line in Zhuzhou, Hunan. This marked a significant technological breakthrough in China’s heavy-duty railway transportation equipment sector and signified a successful strategic transition from traditional heavy-duty locomotives to smart heavy-duty locomotives.
The new smart heavy-duty electric locomotive, independently developed by China, will be used for heavy-duty transport on the Shuozhou-Huanghua Railway, an important channel for transporting coal from western China to the east. It is the world’s most powerful permanent magnet direct-drive heavy-duty freight electric locomotive, with a maximum traction power of 10,400 kilowatts per unit. Compared to traditional electric locomotives with the same number of axles, each smart electric locomotive can increase single-trip load capacity by nearly 1,200 tons, and the annual comprehensive transport capacity can be increased by nearly 280,000 tons.