Jupiter Wagons Ltd. (JWL) has entered into a strategic partnership with Italy’s Lucchini RS Holding S.p.A. to establish India’s first fully integrated private-sector rail wheel manufacturing platform, marking a significant step towards strengthening domestic production of critical railway components. The collaboration also includes SIMEST S.p.A., the Italian government’s development finance institution, with the two Italian entities investing €28 million for a combined 25% equity stake in Jupiter Tatravagonka Railwheel Factory Pvt. Ltd. (JTRWF).
Under the agreement, Lucchini RS will acquire a 15% stake, while SIMEST will hold the remaining 10% in JTRWF. Backed by Italy’s Sistema Italia framework, the partnership combines Jupiter Wagons’ manufacturing capabilities with Lucchini RS’s expertise in railway wheel, axle and wheelset technologies. The collaboration is expected to accelerate the localisation of advanced rail component manufacturing and strengthen India’s position in the global railway supply chain.
The integrated manufacturing platform will combine JTRWF’s existing machining and wheelset assembly facility at Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Maharashtra, with a new greenfield manufacturing complex being developed in Odisha. The Odisha project will add upstream capabilities, including forging, primary metallurgy and railway wheel production, enabling end-to-end manufacturing of wheels, axles and wheelsets under a single integrated operation.
As part of the collaboration, Lucchini RS will provide technology, engineering support and industrial expertise for developing and commissioning the new facilities, while the partners will jointly pursue product development and export opportunities. Jupiter Wagons expects the expanded rail wheel business to cater to growing domestic demand and strengthen India’s ambitions of becoming a global manufacturing hub for railway components under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
