KTZ: 187 new locomotives since the start of 2026 and gondola cars for the wagon fleet

National company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy is preparing its locomotive and wagon fleet for growing traffic. According to the Ministry of Transport, rail transit through Kazakhstan is planned to reach 67 million tonnes by the end of 2029.

KTZ subsidiary Kaztemirtrans, the freight wagon operator, manages a fleet of more than 39,500 freight wagons. In 2027–2031 it plans to add gondola cars, covered wagons and grain hoppers in stages, in line with transport demand. KTZ Freight Transportation plans to buy diesel, electric and hybrid locomotives in 2026–2036.

Since the start of 2026 KTZ has received 187 new locomotives from Wabtec, CRRC and Alstom, 18 of them in September. Trip Optimizer is installed on 425 locomotives, and the KinetiX system has checked more than 4.6 million axles and detected over 17,600 defects; according to the Ministry of Transport, technical inspection of trains has become 30% faster.

Renewal of traction and the wagon fleet directly affects the availability of rolling stock for shipments in wagons and containers on flatcars via Khorgos/Altynkol and Dostyk.

Sources: Tengrinews / KTZ, 7 October 2026; Industrialnaya Karaganda, 7 October 2026.