National Press Release

NEW YORK, Oct. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Sumitomo Corporation of America in conjunction with its car builder partner Nippon Sharyo, Ltd. was awarded on August 27, 2008 the contract to supply 10 Gallery Type bi-level passenger rail cars to Virginia Railway Express (VRE). This contract is in addition to contract to supply 61 cars.

Due to the expanding VRE system and increased ridership, these bi-level cars will have a much larger capacity for seating accommodating up to 144 passengers per car.

"We are very excited about this new purchase," says Dennis Larson, manager of operations support at VRE. "Upon delivery of these cars, all VRE cars will be Gallery Type Bi-level cars. With this new procurement we will bring more safety and style and comfort to our riders."

The contract price is $22 million. Delivery is scheduled in February and March 2010. Car body shells will be manufactured in Nippon Sharyo's Toyokawa plant in Japan and the final assembly will be done at Super Steel's plant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin using various components procured in the US.

The new passenger cars will enhance the ridership of the commuter rail lines in the state of Virginia and will contribute greatly to reducing the heavy traffic in the surrounding urban and suburban areas.

The Sumitomo and Nippon Sharyo team have already successfully delivered over 800 passenger cars in the US market since 1980's. The team is eager to expand their service and contribution to railway authorities throughout North America.

Sumitomo has 50 years of contract management experience in bringing transportation systems to life. As a prime contractor, the company has developed, managed and delivered transit systems for Chicago's Metra, the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, the Maryland Mass Transit Administration, California's CALTRANS Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, the Los Angeles County MTA, and the New York City Transit Authority, and is working on delivering an Automated People Mover (APM) system for Miami International Airport's new North Terminal, MIA Mover in Miami, the Washington-Dulles International Airport and in Atlanta, the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Nippon Sharyo, founded in 1896, has manufactured railroad vehicles for more than 110 years and has annual sales of over $800 million. A world leader in the manufacturing of the Gallery car, the company also owns the largest market share of Japanese "Shinkansen" bullet train sets.

Established in 1952, and headquartered in New York City, SCOA operates offices in 11 American cities. SCOA is the largest wholly-owned subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation, one of the world's leading traders of goods and services. As an integrated business enterprise, the firm has emerged as a major organizer of multinational projects, an expediter of ideas, an important international investor and financier, and a powerful force for distribution of products and global communications through a network of offices worldwide.

SCOA Home page: http://www.sumitomocorp.com/

SOURCE Sumitomo Corporation of America