The Moscow Times reported that French engineering giant Alstom had agreed to acquire a 25% stake in train maker Transmashholding for an undisclosed total amount.

Mr Patrick Kron CEO of Alstom said the French train and power plant builder would make a down payment of EUR 75 million with the rest of the price to be determined based on TMH's performance over the period from 2008 to 2012.

Mr Kron called the agreement a major event for Alstom and for French-Russian cooperation.

Mr Andrei Bokanov chairman of TMH said Russian Railways buys 1,000 locomotives per year, and the partnership with Alstom is aimed at fulfilling that demand.

The deal comes after Russian Railways, or RZD, announced in September that Canadian aerospace and transportation firm Bombardier had pulled out of talks to buy a stake in TMH.

(Sourced from The Moscow Times)