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High-speed rail construction will spark a boom in R&D for high-speed rail cables.
High-speed rail construction will spark a boom in R&D for high-speed rail cables.
Release date:
2013-12-31
Source:
[Cable News Network] In recent years, China's high-speed rail development has been advancing rapidly, and even globally, "China's High-Speed Rail" has rightfully become a hot topic. According to the goals outlined in the 18th National Congress, the average annual compound growth rate of GDP is expected to remain around 7% over the next few years. Over the past two years, the government has set economic development targets focused on "maintaining reasonable GDP growth while promoting economic structural adjustments, addressing overcapacity through reform and innovation, and prioritizing the management of local government debt risks—achieving both improved quality and efficiency in economic growth without triggering adverse side effects." From January to November 2013, China's domestic fixed-asset investment reached 39.1 trillion yuan.
[Cable News Network] In recent years, China's high-speed rail development has been advancing rapidly, and even on the global stage, "China's high-speed rail" has rightfully become a hot topic. According to the goals outlined in the 18th National Congress, the average annual compound growth rate of GDP is expected to remain around 7% over the next few years. Over the past two years, the government has set economic development targets focused on "maintaining reasonable GDP growth while promoting economic structural adjustments, addressing overcapacity through reform and innovation, strengthening efforts to manage local government debt risks, and ensuring that economic growth not only enhances quality and efficiency but also avoids any adverse long-term consequences."
From January to November 2013, China’s domestic fixed-asset investment reached 39.1 trillion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 19.9%. However, this growth rate was 0.7 percentage points lower than the same period in 2012, marking the first time in two years that the pace dipped below 20%. On a month-on-month basis, the growth rate of completed fixed-asset investments has steadily declined since March of this year. Currently, the policy stance is focused on "stabilizing growth, preventing inflation, and managing risks." As a result, the central government’s strong willingness to rekindle investment efforts has clearly diminished, and the trend of slowing domestic fixed-asset investment continues unabated.
Economic transformation is driving struggling industries to upgrade and transform. Moving forward, the government will prioritize supporting sectors such as environmental protection, smart technologies, and information-based consumption. Meanwhile, the government’s targeted efforts are creating structural investment opportunities in niche sub-sectors—including the high-speed rail industry.
High-speed rail construction is gaining strong momentum.
Railway and highway construction have always been key tools for the government to stimulate the economy. After witnessing a significant rebound in growth momentum during the second half of last year, investment in railway and highway projects has remained steady this year, reflecting the government's commitment to maintaining stable economic growth.
In terms of high-speed rail exports, the global railway market is experiencing steady growth. According to relevant statistics from SCI Verkehr, a German railway industry information and consulting firm, the global railway market was valued at 131 billion euros in 2010. Among these, the Asia-Pacific region, Western Europe, and the North American Free Trade Area emerged as the three largest markets worldwide. By 2015, the global railway market is projected to expand to 160 billion euros, with an average annual growth rate of approximately 4.1%.
High-speed rail diplomacy has become our country’s breakthrough in showcasing "Made in China" to the world: On November 26, 2013, Premier Li Keqiang joined the prime ministers of 16 Central and Eastern European nations at Romania’s Parliament Palace to tour an exhibition highlighting China’s cutting-edge high-speed rail technology. The decision by Central and Eastern European countries to adopt China’s high-speed rail and nuclear power technologies marks a significant milestone for China’s new administration, symbolizing a transformative shift—from manufacturing solely for domestic use to positioning Chinese-made equipment as a key driver of innovative foreign trade strategies. This move also aligns with China’s broader strategic goal of expanding its global influence by exporting advanced railway infrastructure, thereby facilitating the overseas deployment of its robust manufacturing capacity. Meanwhile, leading Chinese rail vehicle manufacturers like CSR Corporation Limited and CNR Corporation Limited—whose core businesses include producing complete trains—are witnessing their export markets steadily grow, contributing increasingly to their overall revenue streams.
In terms of domestic demand for high-speed railways, the uncertainty caused by the 2013 Ministry of Railways reform has now been eliminated. Railway equipment bidding and state-led railway construction projects have resumed their normal pace, making it clear that domestic high-speed rail development is playing a significant role in driving economic growth. Since 2013, the country has steadily raised its railway investment targets—during the 12th Five-Year Plan, the planned fixed-asset investment in railways was increased to 3.3 trillion yuan, an additional 500 billion yuan compared to the originally set target of 2.8 trillion yuan. In 2013, total societal investment in railways reached 690 billion yuan, with another 1.4 trillion yuan expected to be completed over the next two years. Moreover, in 2013, the number of newly initiated railway projects was adjusted upward from the original plan of 38 to 47. With more than 20,000 kilometers of new railway lines projected to come into operation, achieving this ambitious goal will require annual railway investments to remain consistently around 600 billion yuan.
From January to October 2013, railway fixed-asset investment reached 429.3 billion yuan, with infrastructure investment accounting for 383.5 billion yuan. Overall fixed-asset investment grew by 1% year-on-year, while infrastructure investment surged by 6% compared to the previous year. To meet the ambitious target of 690 billion yuan in railway investments, the workload for the remaining two months will be exceptionally high. On one hand, the fourth quarter traditionally marks the peak season for railway investment due to seasonal factors. On the other hand, after more than two years of adjustments, railway investments—especially those in high-speed rail projects—are gradually returning to normal levels, and railway construction plans are once again back on track.
Since the high-speed train accident in July 2011, the bidding process for high-speed rail vehicle equipment had temporarily stalled. However, this year’s resumption has sparked a rapid surge in high-speed rail investment. Over the next two years, the momentum is expected to continue at the breakneck pace seen in 2013, ensuring that railway investment remains at its peak.
High-speed rail cables are in high demand.
The rise of high-speed rail investment is set to spark a surge in sales of specialized cables used in high-speed rail equipment. As efficient, high-performance, and highly stable solutions for power transmission and distribution, cable products are increasingly being adopted across broader applications—and with growing cable lengths, the challenges associated with their use have become more pronounced, presenting significant hurdles for manufacturers producing cables for high-speed rail systems.
Due to the unique environmental conditions and specialized requirements of high-speed railway construction, the power cables used must largely meet stringent criteria such as low smoke, halogen-free properties, flame retardancy, fire resistance, oil resistance, UV resistance, moisture resistance, waterproofing, mold prevention, and rodent protection. Some applications even demand termite resistance. As a result, the power cables primarily used in high-speed rail projects will consist of specialized types, including DC traction cables, flame-retardant cables, fire-resistant cables, eco-friendly and green cables, and self-regulating temperature-control cables.
However, the absence of a unified industry standard for high-speed rail cables domestically has become a hidden risk on the path to promising growth. Currently, China mainly adopts two sets of standards: European and Japanese. This situation stems from the early days of high-speed rail construction, when components were largely sourced from European and Japanese suppliers. Yet, high-speed rail cables from these two regions—each rooted in distinct geographical and technological backgrounds—actually exhibit significant differences in performance. As a result, when these cables are introduced and used domestically, their overall performance often ends up being far superior to what the actual needs of the trainsets require, leading to unnecessary waste of resources.
Currently, some of the more well-known European manufacturers include Nexans and Prysmian, while a particularly representative Japanese company in this field is Hitachi Cable. For instance, the high-speed rail cables capable of powering trains traveling at 200–350 km/h—technology already serving China—are developed and produced by Hitachi Cable.
However, imports from European and Japanese manufacturers have provided significant inspiration for China's research and development as well as production of high-speed railway cables. For instance, China's current bullet train technology now integrates the technological achievements of two of the world's most advanced systems: on one hand, it adopts a design and manufacturing model heavily influenced by European concepts, while on the other, it draws upon the successful implementation of Japan's Shinkansen high-speed rail technology.
However, developing high-performance, high-security railway cables remains a significant challenge for domestic cable manufacturers. This is especially true in the wake of the tragic "7.23" Wenzhou high-speed train accident, which highlighted vulnerabilities in the Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway's catenary and power supply systems, as well as the inadequacies of China's advanced technology in high-speed rail power detection equipment. These incidents underscore the urgent need to strengthen research and development efforts in the field of domestic high-speed rail cables.
For instance, China's 27.5kV and 10kV AC high-speed railway power supply cables are both integral components that were introduced as part of European and Japanese high-speed rail technologies. While absorbing and adapting these technologies, some high-speed railway PCB reverse-engineering designs and construction processes encountered significant detours in their integration, resulting in the technical performance of single-core high-speed railway power supply cables failing to meet the required standards—and thus falling short of the internationally recognized level. According to investigations, since 2010, 44 out of the sudden power outage incidents on a particular Chinese high-speed railway line were caused by breakdowns at intermediate joints. Additionally, widespread damage occurred due to the insulation resistance of the single-core cable’s outer sheath failing to meet national standards, leading to difficulties in pinpointing fault locations. Other critical factors contributing to these failures included the presence of water treeing within the cable insulation.
Therefore, as China's high-speed rail construction continues to deepen, introducing, absorbing, and subsequently localizing technology remain among the critical tasks ahead. It is highly necessary to promptly establish a standardized system for high-speed rail cables, anchored in China's independently developed technologies. This approach will not only prevent the challenges of achieving localization due to inconsistent standards—or even redundant R&D efforts—but also lay a solid foundation for future implementation of market准入 mechanisms for high-speed rail cable products. (Li Jingjing)
(This article was first published on CableABC.com. Please credit the source when reprinting.)
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