Alstom has announced it will hand over the first two class 452 Coradia Stream trainsets to Renfe in June 2026, with a total of 16 units to be delivered before the end of the year.
Behind schedule
The 16-unit figure falls well short of the pace required to meet contractual deadlines. Based on several estimates, between 39 and 40 trainsets would need to be delivered annually to stay on track — roughly the 3–4 units per month originally anticipated.
Transport Minister Óscar Puente flagged the extent of the slippage in March, stating that had Alstom met its obligations, around 70 of the 111 trains under the first contract would already have been delivered. Contributing factors include assembly difficulties at the Santa Perpètua de Mogoda plant, bogie-related issues, and a temporary suspension of testing on the Maresme line.
Parallel entry into service with class 453
The first class 452 sets are expected to enter revenue service on the Rodalies network in Catalonia in parallel with the initial class 453 Stadler trainsets, which are due to begin carrying passengers on the Madrid Cercanías network before the end of summer 2026. A total of 72 class 452 units have been earmarked for Catalonia; to simplify maintenance and capitalise on the proximity of Alstom’s factory, the Rodalies network will not receive any of the longer class 453 sets.
Two contracts, 201 Coradia Stream trains
The full order stands at 201 trainsets split across two contracts: 152 units awarded in March 2021 and a follow-on batch of 49 in December 2022, with a combined value of approximately €1.8 billion. All vehicles are being manufactured at Alstom’s Santa Perpètua de Mogoda facility — the only rolling stock plant in Catalonia — and will eventually serve the Cercanías networks of Barcelona, Madrid, and Andalusia. Each six-car articulated EMU stretches 100 metres, seats up to 900 passengers in a bi-level mixed-floor configuration, and is designed to increase capacity by at least 20% on Spain’s busiest commuter corridors.