Yesterday Darenne's national rail operator THD held a press conference on the test track nearby the town of Hale on the western shore of the island. While the reveal of the Class 305 high-speed train - a project that has recently gained momentum after several trade deals for components Darenne was not capable to manufacture - came at no surprise other than the fact that the project survived the 30 year hiatus, it was not the biggest announcement there. Heleta Taffine, 49, has revealed to the press that a plan rumored to be moving through the Federal Government for the last few years has come to fruition.
The company itself, along with over 30 other design bureaus, maintenance operators, transport companies, and even a few research institutes related to nation's still lifeless space program will be unified under an "umbrella" brand TeLetDar (TLD), which will be partially owned by Darenne's government, and will provide for interactions between subdivisions, as well as a unified system of product codes and designations. Road and rail vehicles will carry dual designations - old and new - with old ones being reserved specifically for national use. Transport companies, such as THD itself, will retain their old brands, and most of the proceeds will remain within themselves, with key difference being an increased degree of integration of fare systems and services of them all. The full export lineup is to be presented "in early 2017", but that didn't stop speculations on likely candidates.
Class 305 (pictured above) and 417 (the electric suburban train that was manufactured since 2011 in small quantities for lines around Kuhende and Tarferre) - are amongst them, as well as a likely update to CR-57 turboprop airliner - an aging workhorse of DareHolla, and several yet unnamed ferries to operate on the long-distance lines such as ones to Flowrisa or Bentria. Automotive industry has been dead ever since the August Revolt - no one counts the mistake of '89 which was the "Omega" - and it is unlikely that anything will happen there, unless a last-minute licensed production is agreed on. Same goes for the National Aeronautics Institute and Darenne Microsatellite Initiative - both present as part of the merger - as they are yet to do anything publicly but move across downtown Kuhende several times last year. With international interest in spaceflight growing, though, that might change sooner than anticipated.
Another surprise was inclusion of 2 power companies - "Varne Darenfu" and Elledae" - into the unified enterprise. While the official explanation that more than 75% of their power is directed towards supplying specifically transport infrastructure is true, they are being separate from the rest of the companies under the brand, and taken off the common energy market. While some consider it as a form of political revenge - Elledae's current CEO Mila Vekhane was heavily involved in 1998 energy market manipulations and has stood up against government involvement in the economy for years - the common opinion is just that it will help decrease expenses on electricity in the future for TLD.
Whichever the case or the future of this project is, though, remains to be seen. Until then, we have January to look forward to, when company has pledged to reveal what they will actually be focusing on, as well as more pressing matters - such as a nearing election in four of the provinces, and a season finale of "Kolferu" - we all know that's the only reason anyone here still watches Channel 7 anyways.