China's Ministry of Railways on Monday signed two contracts worth more than 350 million euros (US$455 million) with French company Alstom, a global leader in power generation and rail infrastructure.

The first contract, which follows a letter of intent signed in October 2006, is for the manufacture of 500 electric freight "Co-Co" (triple axle) locomotives based on Alstom Transport's Prima 6000.

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The overall value of this contract is around 1.1 billion euros (US$1.43 billion), with Alstom's share worth 310 million euros (US$403 million) and its Chinese partner's, Datong Electric Locomotives, some 800 million euros (US$1.04 billion).

The second contract, worth 42 million euros (US$54.6 million), is for the electrification of the "Shi-Tai" high-speed line. This is the first infrastructure contract won by Alstom in China.

Stretching over 189 kilometres, the line will link the cities of Shijiazhuang and Taiyuan, located in the provinces of Hebei and Shanxi, about 600 kilometers to the southwest of Beijing. Passengers will be able to travel between Beijing and Taiyuan in three hours after construction is completed by the end of 2008, according to the company's press release.

The France-headquartered company will provide electrification equipments and engineering support for the lines.

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