The first batch of China-made high-power alternating current electric locomotives have come off the production line in northeastern coastal city Dalian.

The locomotives will play a leading role in the sixth speed rise of China's trunk railway to be launched on April 18 next year.

The locomotive is named "Hexie", meaning "harmony" in Chinese.

Such drive electric locomotives are advanced in the world, said Zhang Shuguang, deputy chief engineer and director of the Transport Administration of the Ministry of Railways.

According to Sun Xiyun, board chairman of the Dalian Locomotive & Rolling Stock Co. Ltd., the producer, drive locomotives running on Chinese rail lines now are all double current.

Most electric locomotives in operation can only drive freight trains up to 3,800 tons at 80 to 100 km per hour, while "Hexie" can drive as much as 5,000 tons running at 120 km per hour.

The new locomotives will be used in trunk lines such as the Beijing-Guangzhou railway and the Beijing-Shanghai railway, and main coal transportation lines, said Zhang.

According to Sun, 44 units of the locomotives will come off the production line and put into use by the end of this year and 180 units more next year.

Source: Xinhua