The race for Portugal's 300 km/h high-speed trains is left to two companies: Alstom and Talgo will bid

The race was left to two manufacturers in the tender for the trains to be used in Portugal's future high-speed railway services.

State railway company CP – Comboios de Portugal will invite French Alstom and Spanish Talgo, which have passed the pre-qualification stage, to submit bids.

The base price of the tender is 504 million euros.

In the first phase, 12 high-speed trains will be purchased

CP within the scope of the tender:

12 high-speed electric train sets,

spare parts and special equipment

and maintenance service

plans to purchase.

The contract also includes an option to purchase eight additional trains.

Trains must be able to operate at speeds of up to 300 km/h on the Portuguese railway network.

It will carry more than 500 passengers

According to CP's conditions, each of the new trains will have a capacity of more than 500 passengers.

Trains will be accessible to passengers with reduced mobility.

Also:

bicycle areas,

wifi,

USB-C sockets,

video surveillance system

Equipment such as this is envisaged.

When will the first train arrive?

According to the tender schedule, the contract is planned to be signed in the first quarter of 2027.

However, high-speed trains should not be expected to be put into service in a short time.

The target date for the delivery of the first train set is the first quarter of 2031.

Therefore, today's development is not the trains entering service, but the purchasing process moving from pre-qualification to the offer stage.

Why do Alstom and Talgo stand out?

Different advantages of the two companies for Portugal is available.

Talgo's Avril platform can reach speeds of 330 km/h and the company has experience with the railway infrastructure of the Iberian Peninsula.

In the tender, the trains must be fully compatible with the 1,668 mm Iberian track gauge used in Portugal.

Alstom, on the other hand, has had a strong position in the Portuguese railway sector for a long time. A significant portion of the trains operating in Portugal feature the company's production or technology, and Alstom also has a production facility in the country.

However, at this stage the winner has not been determined.

Greater renewal of CP fleet underway

The high-speed train tender is part of CP's wider fleet renewal programme.

The company previously signed a contract with Alstom/DST for 153 trains to be used in urban and regional services.

It was announced that 22 trains purchased from Stadler for regional services have started to arrive in Portugal and the homologation and certification processes are continuing.

The new 300 km/h trains will be used by CP to provide its own passenger services on these lines as Portugal's high-speed railway network comes into operation.

Resources

ECO — António Larguesa, 22 September 2026

https://eco.sapo.pt/2026/09/22/cp-convida-franceses-e-espanhois-a-apresentar-propostas-para-comboios-de-alta-velocidade/

Rádio Renascença — High-speed train file

https://rr.pt/especial/economia/2026/05/21/quanto-mais-lugares-melhor-veja-os-comboios-que-a-cp-pode-comprar-para-a-alta-velocidade/471585/