|
|
Hybrid Locomotive Firm RailPower Posts $15M Loss in 2004, Records First Sales March 2005Shares of RailPower Technologies Corp. climbed more than 10 per cent after Canadian Pacific Railway said it will buy 35 hybrid locomotives over a four-year period from the company.Financial terms of deal were not released, but under the agreement, seven of CPR's yard locomotives will be converted this year to low-emission, quiet Green Goat Series locomotives using hybrid technology for use at its Calgary operations. Another 28 locomotives would be converted into Green Goats over the following three years if the first of RailPower's hybrids meet performance guarantees. The contract helped send RailPower shares up 75 cents or about 15 per cent to $5.75 in trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange. News of the agreement came as RailPower posted a $15 million loss in 2004, its first year as a manufacturer, but also recorded its first sales. The Vancouver-based company's net loss for the year was 51 cents per diluted share, up from $3.9 million or 23 cents per share for the previous 12 months. Sales were $740,000 during the year, compared to zero for 2003. The company said it had 79 orders for its environmentally friendly gas/electric Green Goat locomotives, 13 of those firm orders, at the end of 2004. It had only one firm order at the end of 2003. During the year, RailPower hired additional staff, bringing its total employees to 60 from 37. "RailPower has transitioned from a focus on research and development to one of sales and commercial production of our hybrid locomotives and the expansion of our product line and markets," RailPower CEO Jim Maier said in a release. The company's research and development costs rose to $10.2 million from $2.2 million in 2003, while expenses were up to $15.3 million compared to $4 million in the previous year. Neal Foot, senior vice-president of operations for CPR, said the Green Goat locomotives performed well in testing, last year, but more work needed to be done in strenuous conditions to prove the hybrid's robustness before taking delivery of the others. CPR's yard fleet currently consists of approximately 220 low-horsepower locomotives built in the 1950s and replacement components for the aging fleet are becoming increasingly difficult to find, the company said. "Our studies indicate operating cost savings approaching $4 million annually should we acquire all 35 Green Goat hybrids," Foot said in a statement. The Green Goats, powered by batteries charged by a small diesel generator, will be assembled by Alstom at Calgary shops leased from CPR. SOURCE: Canadian Press | ||
|
Hybrid Car Links
|