Sri Lanka Railways M9

The Sri Lanka Railways M9 is a mainline six axle Co'Co' diesel electric locomotive built by Alstom, with the manufacturer's code AD 32C, and imported in 2000 for Sri Lanka Railways. Ten units were ordered in 1997 and delivered in 2000, costing 190 million Sri Lankan rupees each. The locomotives initially had both electrical and mechanical problems, including engine malfunction and problems with the engine control units, and the machines required modifications for use on curving track. By 2010 only three were in operation, and the delay in returning the others to service was ascribed to the unaffordability of spare parts and the prohibitive cost of work by foreign firms. The first of the seven inoperative locomotives, number 869, was returned to service after six years in September 2010, following work by the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Modern Technologies and the Industrial Technology Institute. M9s were not allowed on the line above Nawalapitiya or on the Kelani Valley and Matale lines.