WHY SUCH A RIGID FRAME TRUCK?

The first built-completely-of-Russian-components diesel locomotives will come from a works in Yekaterinburg.

Sinara - Transportnye mashiny (STM) and RZD signed an agreement on cooperation in the development, production, supply, testing and maintenance of the new Class 2ES6A electric locomotives and Class 2TE35A diesel locomotives, both for the main line service and with asynchronous traction equipment.

The future Class 2TE35As are to be the 16-axle locomotives, to be able to haul trains weighing of up to 9,000 tonnes. They are to be fitted with two 3,650 kW Type DM-185 engines, to be produced by UDMZ (Uralsky dizel-motorny zavod) of Yekaterinburg. Their traction equipment will be manufactured by Tyagovye komponenty (Traction components) of Yekaterinburg, both companies belonging to the STM.

The traction motors are to be of the Type ATD1000 (a 1,000 kW output), i. e. the same as in the Class 2ES6A locomotives, and will be manufactured by Russkie elektricheskie dvigateli (Russian electric motors), Chelyabinsk.

The Russians still like their back-to-back single-cab units, in the fashion devotees of the transition era can appreciate.

Image retrieved from Railvolution.

I wonder if the Russians are still building for light axle loadings.  They're not carrying the weight of multiple prime movers in the fashion of the Centipede or the Centennial on those bogies.