10.7 billion! South Korea launches bidding for the construction of its first hydrogen-powered light

According to the Rail Transit Exhibition, Daejeon City in South Korea has officially launched the bidding process for the construction of Line 2 of the light rail transportation system. At the same time, Hyundai Rotem has begun manufacturing hydrogen light rail trains for the project.

The launch of the bidding process comes just after the final cost of the project was determined, with a total investment of 1.507 trillion won (about 10.7 billion yuan). Construction is expected to start in October this year. The line is 38.8 kilometers long and has 45 stations. It will be divided into 14 sections for bidding, each about 2-4 kilometers long. In addition, a vehicle depot will be built in Daedeok District. To support the local struggling construction industry, Daejeon City plans to hand over 49% of the project to local construction companies, of which 9 sections have a cost of less than 30 billion won.

Hyundai Rotem is producing 34 hydrogen-powered light rail trains for the project under a 293.4 billion won contract signed in February and finalized in July.

The light rail trains will be able to run more than 200 kilometers per refueling. The vehicles will be equipped with advanced technologies, including transparent OLED screens, LTO batteries with higher safety, and collision warning and automatic braking systems.

The first light rail train is expected to be delivered in the second half of 2026, and the entire vehicle production is scheduled to be completed by mid-2028.

The cost of the project has increased significantly, almost doubling the original estimate, mainly due to rising prices and increased costs for relocating utilities. Daejeon is now preparing to launch a contract bidding totaling 915.8 billion won, covering construction, electrical systems and signal systems.

Although the project's current completion date is set for the end of 2028, Daejeon City is also considering opening the 4.6-kilometer section of Line 2 from Yeonju District to Daejeon Integrated Passenger Terminal nine months earlier.

Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo said: "After 28 years in the planning stage, the Daejeon Line 2 project has finally officially started with the start of vehicle production."

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