Norfolk Southern unveils all-battery locomotive
The 1,500 horsepower locomotive, dubbed NS 999, will be used to move cars around the rail yard, Norfolk Southern said. It uses 1,080 rechargeable 12-volt lead acid batteries to store power, and can run for about a day on a charge. It also recharges using the energy from braking.
The battery-only operation gives the train zero exhaust emissions.
Low-horsepower locomotives like the new electric one are typically used in rail yards. Norfolk Southern will next be turning its attention to hybrid diesel-and-electric locomotives for long-haul trips, said Gerhard Thelen, Norfolk Southern's vice president of operation planning and support. He runs the research and testing department that designed the new battery-powered locomotive.
A hybrid locomotive for long-haul use would run on a mix of electricity and a diesel engine, and it would channel energy from braking back to the batteries, Thelen said. The company is aiming to test such a locomotive by the end of next year.
"We're looking forward to applying this technology in regular service," he said.
The Norfolk, Va.-based company built the battery-powered prototype at its Juniata Locomotive Shop in Altoona. It said it developed the prototype in partnership with the Energy Department, the Federal Railroad Administration, and Pennsylvania State University.
Related News

Nuclear helps Belgium increase electricity exports in 2019
BELGIUM - Belgium's electricity transmission system operator, Elia, said that the major trends in 2019 were a steady increase in (mainly offshore) renewable power generation, better availability of nuclear-generating facilities and an increase in electricity exports.
In 2019, 48.8% of the power generated in Belgium came from nuclear plants. This was in line with the total for 2017 (50%) and significantly more than in 2018 (31.2%) when several reactors were unavailable.
Belgium exported more electricity in 2019 than it imported with net exports of 1.8TWh (2.1% of the energy mix), in contrast to 2018 when Belgium imported 17.5TWh (20%).
Elia said this “should…