Rail supplier updates from CAI International, Keolis, Ricardo, Alstom, American Business Research and Kuehne + Nagel (July 2)

CAI International entered an agreement to purchase 2,000 new rail cars over a three-year period, starting in second-quarter 2016. The company will purchase a variety of types of freight and tank cars, and expects to spend more than $200 million on the order.

Keolis America President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Townsend announced plans to retire. He's had a 43-year career in several industries, including oil and gas, environmental service, facilities management and transportation. He joined Keolis in 2007. Under his leadership, the company won contracts to operate the Virginia Railway Express and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority commuter-rail system, company officials said. He also oversaw the acquisition of Tectrans Inc., which is now Keolis Transit America.

Ricardo plc launched "Ricardo Rail" after completing a $47.1 million acquisition of Lloyd's Register Rail. Ricardo is still waiting for the Chinese government’s approval of the acquisition of the small rail joint venture partly owned by Lloyd's Register Group in China. A 12-month transitional services agreement is in place with Lloyd's to provide administrative and operational support on remaining elements of the transfer, Ricardo officials said.

Alstom was awarded a $177 million contract to supply 17 Regiolis trains to the Rhone-Alpes region for the future Franco-Valdo-Genevois RER. The order is an option exercised under a contract signed with national French railway company SNCF in 2009.

American Business Research Inc. launched a High Speed Railway Division to expand the company's presence in U.S. states where high-speed rail development is underway. The new division will aim to assist public and private entities with a range of services related to high-speed rail construction.

German firm Kuehne + Nagel Group plans to acquire ReTrans Inc., a U.S. provider of multimodal transportation management solutions. The acquisition is expected to build on Kuehne + Nagel's overland strategy and strengthen the company's position as an end-to-end logistics provider in North America, officials said in a press release. Financial terms of the planned acquisition were not disclosed.