BRIAN TUMULTY

btumulty@gannett.com

WASHINGTON — A Steuben County factory operated by Alstom Transport is expected to receive a $2.5 billion contract from Amtrak to build the next generation of high-speed Acela trains, New York Sen. Charles Schumer said Monday.

The contract would add 400 jobs at Alstom’s Hornell facility and another 350 for suppliers in the surrounding region, Alstom spokesman Pete Barkey said.

“It’s one of the largest contracts they have ever received and it’s a huge shot in the arm for the Southern Tier,’’ Schumer said. “It’s one of the biggest things that has happened in the Southern Tier, which has had its share of setbacks.’’

Amtrak’s board is expected to make the official announcement Tuesday, said Schumer, who traveled to Hornell on Monday to break the news.

Amtrak officials did not respond to a request for comment.

Alstom’s Hornell facility employs 500 workers in New York’s Southern Tier. That’s about half the number that worked there several years ago when the facility had a contract with the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

“We are doing design, build and maintenance on existing train sets,’’ the Alstom spokesman said. “Our customers are major transportation systems around the country for major cities like Boston, New York and Philadelphia.’’

Alstom Transport, based in New York City, is a subsidiary of Alstom SA based in Paris, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high-speed trains.

Barkey declined to comment on the Amtrak contract “due to the fact that it an ongoing procurement,’’ but confirmed Alstom has proposed building the next generation of high-speed Acela train sets. Those include locomotives and passenger cars used on the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston.

Alstom was a member of a consortium led by Montreal, Canada-based Bombardier for the original Acela train sets.

The existing Acela trains were acquired in 1994 and are under leases that expire between 2021 and 2023. Acela passenger cars feature reclining seats, electrical outlets for cell phone charges, and laptop computers and tables.

Republican Rep. Tom Reed of Corning told reporters in a conference call Monday that the announcement will have “a huge impact’’ in the region.

“I believe we are positioned very well in the Southern Tier and western New York to see a rebirth of U.S. manufacturing,’’ Reed said.

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