BERLIN, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Siemens has secured an order from the Austrian National Railway Company for new train carriages worth more than 1.5 billion euros (1.7 billion U.S. dollars), the Munich-based industrial group announced on Friday.

According to the Siemens train division, the public tender for the supply of passenger carriages published by the state-owned logistics and transport company was one of the largest of its kind in European history. Siemens said it had signed a contract to deliver up to 700 carriages to the Austrian National Railway Company within the next five years.

The new railway infrastructure is scheduled to come into use from 2022 onwards.

The news follows a preliminary decision by the Austrian National Railway Company in favor of Siemens back in July when the two parties agreed on the framework conditions of a potentially longer-term commercial relationship which can be expanded beyond 2023.

The Austrian National Railway Company is owned entirely by the Federal Republic of Austria. The group spans passenger- and freight-services and includes several international subsidiaries in central and eastern Europe.