Hitachi picked by Abellio to supply ScotRail trains

By Reiji Murai and Sophie Knight

TOKYO, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Hitachi Ltd (Other OTC: HTHIF - news) said on Friday it was picked to supply trains and maintenance services to rail operator Abellio's franchise in Scotland, with the carriages likely worth up to $460 million according to a source familiar with the matter.

Hitachi, which moved its rail unit's headquarters to Britain in April to expand its business in Europe, said Abellio had chosen it as a preferred bidder for a contract to supply rolling stock and long-term maintenance.

Hitachi did not disclose the value of the deal, but a source familiar with Hitachi's train business estimated the total cost of the carriages could reach about 40 billion to 50 billion yen ($370-460 million).

Hitachi has built a train assembly plant in northeast England, creating 730 jobs, as part of a drive to capture new rail business in Britain and across Europe.

Abellio, the international arm of state-owned Dutch rail company NS, won a 6 billion pound ($9.67 billion) contract on Oct. 8 to run rail services in Scotland for the next 10 years, replacing Scotland-based FirstGroup (LSE: FGP.L - news) .

The Abellio deal, once finalised, will be Hitachi's second major rail contract in Europe this year, after the British government awarded it the final tranche of funding in April for the Intercity Express Programme, bringing Hitachi's total orders for the project to 2.7 billion pounds for 866 carriages and maintenance over 27.5 years.

The Scottish deal would be the first for Hitachi's AT200 commuter train, which will be fitted with Wifi, air conditioning and power sockets throughout. The trains would be built at Hitachi's new factory in Newton Aycliffe near Newcastle, where the Intercity Express trains will also be assembled. ($1 = 0.6205 British pound, 107.7200 Japanese yen) (Editing by Edmund Klamann)