China's Changchun Railway Vehicle Co has announced that it had the winning bid for 120 light-rail vehicles for an Israeli project, marking the first time for a Chinese transportation equipment manufacturer to win an international tender in that country.

The cars will go to Tel Aviv's Metropolitan Mass Transit System, which said on Nov 27 that it will use the cars for its first rail transit system. The cars will need to meet high safety standard and other security rules.

Changchun Railway, with HQ in the city of Changchun, in Jilin province, had to beat out 10 other bidders, including Alstom, Siemens and Bombardier and says that it won because of its better technology and services.

The company has paid close attention to the client's needs and conducted a thorough analysis over the past five years.

It says that it will also guarantee a 16-year-vehicle-maintenance agreement for its Israeli client.