Early this September during the Eastern Economic Forum, the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin has officially launched the Pacific Railway, which is considered the first private railway of Russia.
It is worth nothing that the test operations on the railway started back in November, 2024. This large-scale and ambition project was completed in a short span of only two years. Construction of the Pacific Railway was initially aimed at increasing competiveness of the Siberian-Far Eastern transportation system, as well as reducing congestion of sea ports of Vanino and Sovetskaya Harbor areas.
This railway located in Yakutia, built with private investments, connects Elginskoye coal deposit with the port of Elga on the Sea of Okhotsk in Khabarovsk Territory. Elginskoye coal deposit is the largest deposit of the high-grade coal with low sulfur and phosphorus contents.
The Pacific Railway is extremely curvy due to the harsh mountain conditions. The total length of the railway is 531 kilometers. The track laying was performed from both sides simultaneously – the Sea of Okhotsk and Elginskoye coal deposit – and continued uninterrupted during even the most severe frosts (here the temperature can go as low as -72 °С). Due to the similar conditions and scale of construction, the Pacific Railway is compared to Baikal-Amur Mainline. Besides, The Pacific Railway is connected to Baikal-Amur Mainline by the Ulak-Elga spur. In total, there are 18 sidings and 1 station on the Pacific Railway. Port Elga Station is also being built at the moment.
Almost 4 000 specialists were involved into construction of this large-scale project. Research and Development Company Promelectronica is also a part of this massive project – 215 kilometers of the Railway are equipped with our systems. Efforts underway to fit several more sections, as well as to organize automatic block posts.
Trackside signaling equipment (light signals and points) on 6T and 13T sidings, as well Station 1 are controlled and monitored by MPC-I Computer-based interlocking system. Clearance and occupancy of the train tracks are controlled by DKU-M Wheel sensors, which transmit the data directly to ShTK Communications cabinet via USKS-M Communication Integration Unit. This universal controller ensures secure transmission of data from counting posts to MPC-I and replaces the whole axle counting system cabinet.
Station 1 is fitted with ARM DNC train dispatcher terminal to control light signals and points on 6T and 13T sidings. Also, Station 1 has ARM DSP Station master terminal to control equipment on sidings from 10T through 13T, whereas ARM DSP on siding 7T has a capability to control equipment on sidings from 6T through 9T. Since there are no infrastructure or permanent buildings available, all signaling equipment is housed in mobile equipment containers.
Data transmission and communication is organized via fiber-optic communication lines, as well as satellite communications. In case of cable failure, the communication is automatically maintained via satellite channel.
The Pacific Railway is an ambition infrastructure project. Human will and determination have conquered this harsh region - permafrost conditions, adverse mountainous terrain and lack of infrastructure of any kind.
