Alstom has reached an agreement with German defense conglomerate KNDS to sell its factory in Görlitz, Germany, Reuters reports, citing both companies.
The deal is expected to close by 2027, but KNDS will begin using the facility this year to manufacture components for the Leopard 2 tank, Puma infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), and Boxer armored personnel carrier (APC). The company plans to retain 350 to 400 of the current employees, while Alstom will transfer around 100 workers to other facilities.
The Görlitz plant currently produces Twindexx Vario double-decker electric trains for national railway operators in Germany and Israel, as well as trams for Leipzig. Existing orders for 96 Twindexx Vario units were expected to sustain production at the site until 2026.
In summer 2023, Alstom announced plans to restructure its production operations in Germany and Poland, relocating manufacturing from Bautzen and Görlitz—acquired in 2021 through the Bombardier Transportation takeover—to Wrocław and Katowice, Poland. At the time, Alstom also revealed its intention to sell the Görlitz facility, stating that an unnamed engineering company could become its new owner.
