Eurotrain

In 1997 it was one of two competitors to supply the core system of Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR), and it was awarded the status of preferred bidder by concessionaire THSRC.

[1] The companies wanted to avoid a repeat of a competitive battle they had for Korea's KTX, which resulted in a loss for Siemens and limited benefits for victorious GEC-Alsthom.

[5] Also in 1997, THSRC declared Eurotrain the preferred bidder to supply the core technology,[6][7] which included the high-speed trains, track, electrification, signalling and communication.

[20] THSRC announced on 28 December 1999 that it would negotiate a final contract with the Taiwan Shinkansen Consortium, saying that while both trains were satisfactory, TSC had "technology, price, finance and maintenance merits".

[21] It was rumoured that the decision for TSC over Eurotrain was political:[22] according to Taiwanese media, the choice was made to pave the way for then-President Lee Teng-hui's visit to Japan.

[22][23] However, in a book published earlier in May 1999, Lee made a case for picking the Japanese offer, claiming that while it was more expensive, the Shinkansen was superior based on safety and political considerations.

[15] The losing Eurotrain consortium interpreted the terms of its earlier preferred bidder status as a binding agreement that THSRC violated by starting negotiations with TSC,[24] and filed an injunction against it.

[26] While Eurotrain eventually conceded the train system bid, it filed a US$800 million damage claim at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre in February 2001.

Although in the nineties, Eurotrain seriously considered to participate in the expected competition for the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway, the constituent companies didn't pursue the joint venture further, and competed for further contracts separately.

[35] The project was officially named Highspeed Train Europe (HTE), and Italy's state railway FS was won as additional partner.