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Switzerland’s railroad company KLW Wheelco has delivered 2,000 forged wheels made in Ukraine to Indian Railways over the past few weeks, according to a report by The Economic Times. This marks the first shipment from Ukraine since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in early 2022.
The announcement follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent trip to Kyiv, where he held discussions with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The news report quoted an Indian official saying an additional 3,500 forged wheels are en route from Ukraine. Earlier this year, orders were placed with the Swiss company for a total of 10,000 forged wheels, valued at Rs 72 crore, the official said.
The wheels are being produced in Dnipro, Ukraine, by Interpipe Group, a global manufacturer of steel pipes and railway wheels. These wheels are for Bogie Open Wagons with Air Brakes (BOXN wagons), primarily used for transporting goods like coal, and are being shipped from a Ukrainian port in the Black Sea, the report said.
While this order is relatively small, it presents an opportunity for India to diversify its import sources as domestic wheel production ramps up. The last procurement order for wheels from KLW Wheelco was awarded by the Indian Railways in March 2021 for 36,000 units valued at Rs 116 crore. However, due to the conflict in Ukraine, the railways had to turn to China for wheel supplies.
Earlier this year, the Railway Board placed an order for 40,000 forged wheels with Hong Kong-based TZ (Taizhong) for Rs 279 crore, which will be manufactured in China by Taiyuan Heavy Industry Railway Transit Equipment Company in Shanxi.
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Since the 1960s, Indian Railways has been importing forged wheels from various countries, including the UK, Czech Republic, Brazil, Romania, Japan, China, Ukraine, and Russia, requiring around 80,000 wheels annually at Rs 520 crore. Additionally, 40,000 wheels are sourced from the Steel Authority of India Ltd.
Official projections indicate that India's wheel demand could reach 200,000 units per year by 2026 due to the introduction of faster trains. The situation is expected to improve as the national transporter took over a Rs 2,200-crore forged wheel plant established by Rashtriya Ispat Nigam in April. Once fully operational, this plant is capable of producing up to 80,000 wheels annually. Furthermore, a private consortium has been granted an assurance for an annual supply of up to 80,000 units for a new local wheel manufacturing facility, the report further stated.
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