Shares of Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) on Thursday surged over 10%, its biggest gains in one year, on reports that the company will make rolling stock for bullet trains. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe laid the foundation stone of India’s first bullet train project, a high-speed rail link to Mumbai, in Ahmedabad earlier on Thursday.
The stock touched a high of Rs145.80 a share and gained as much as 10.1%, its maximum advance since 7 September 2016. At 11.11am, BHEL was trading at Rs.143.75 on the BSE, up 8.5% from its previous close. The stock gained for the fourth session and rose 15% in this period. Year to date, it has gained nearly 20%.
“Bharat Heavy and Kawasaki Heavy Industries to collaborate for making rolling stock for bullet train project,” quoted Abe in Ahmedabad.
The 534-km Rs1 trillion high-speed rail project that will operate trains with average speeds of 200-250kmph will be a game-changer in terms of inter-urban connectivity and establish India as a market for such technologies. The bullet train, which has a capacity to accommodate 750 people, is expected to reduce travel time between the two cities from seven to three hours.
BHEL shares closed Rs.4.85, or 3.66%, higher at Rs.137.40, while Sensex rose by 56 points, or 0.17%, to close at 32,242.
On June 29, 2017 the state-owned BHEL had entered into a technology collaboration agreement with Kawasaki Heavy Industries, (KHI), Japan for the manufacture of stainless steel coaches for metros.
KHI is a manufacturer of heavy equipment and its rolling stock company has supplied EMU trainsets to various countries like the US, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, alongside Japan, the statement said. KHI is also the manufacturer and supplier of the Shinkansen High Speed Bullet Trains, proposed to be introduced in India on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor. The pact will enable BHEL to produce stainless steel coaches indigenously, it added.
The Technology Collaboration Agreement covers establishing a state-of-the-art design, engineering and manufacturing facilities at BHEL, India using Japanese technology, a company statement said.
The pact will also entitle BHEL for all technology advances and upgrades. BHEL has been supplying the Indian Railways both electric and diesel locomotives, EMUs, and propulsion system sets and drives for the same. Kolkata Metro, the first metro project in India, is equipped with BHEL made propulsion system.
Meanwhile, in past four trading sessions, the stock rallied 14% after the BHEL has fixed September 30, 2017 as the record date for the purpose of issuance of bonus shares of the company in the ratio of 1 (One) new equity bonus share Rs 2 each for every 2 (Two) existing equity shares of Rs 2 each.