The 136 Alsthom locomotives ordered in 1951 and built between 1952 and 1962, formed the largest series in the company's fleet until the arrival of the Japanese ones, series 7601 to 7699 and 8601 to 8637.
The locomotives from France arrived in 1952 and were kept at the Barcelona Vilanova depot because the electrification of the Catalan railway lines was not inaugurated until 1956. The rest were built between 1957 and 1962, under license by MACOSA, CAF, and NAVAL. MTM supplied bogies for many of them.
About a hundred were part of the 5th Zone circulating on the Vuit Català network and up to Portbou-Móra la Nova, Ripoll and Manresa. The rest were in Córdoba, Alcázar de San Juan and Santander. In 1971, with the creation of the Talgo TEE Barcelona-Geneva, three were adapted to tow this train, 7630, 7662, and 7666, and they adopted the red livery. In September 1972, with the application of UIC numbering, they were incorporated into series 276.001 to 276.136. They remained in service with practically no modifications until the late eighties. The most significant changes were the adoption of air brakes instead of vacuum brakes and the incorporation of a hose to supply electric heating to passenger coaches.
In the early 1990s, with nearly forty years of operation and the imminent arrival of the new 252s in 1992, along with a large presence of Mitsubishi locomotives, a modernization of sixty units was initiated to extend their service life. However, only ten were ultimately completed, creating the sub-series 276.201 to .210. In 1994, the original locomotives began to disappear, although the rebuilt ones continued in service until 1997.
With the aim of preserving some locomotives, a pair, 7631 and 7652, were assigned to the shunting service of the Talgo branches that used the interchange at the exit of Madrid Atocha from the high-speed line when they were heading to Andalusia or arriving in Madrid.
On October 15, 2015, the Spanish Railways Foundation transferred several vehicles to the FPPFI, and among them was the Alsthom 7631 locomotive. In 2021, its restoration and commissioning began. Today, we can see it restored and operational at the Móra la Nova Museum.
Technical data sheet
| Any construction | 1958 |
| Constructor | Macosa / Valencia, Spain |
| Track width (mm) | 1668 |
| Length | 18.932 mm. |
| Height | 4.260 mm. |
| Amplification | 3.013 mm. |
| Pes | 120 terameters |
| Axis Layout | Brother Brother' |
| Tension | 3.000 Vcc |
| Motors | 6 x 6 TA- 630 |
| Power | 3400 CV |
| Maximum speed | 110 km/h |
Client: FPPFI
Restoration Types: Functional
Any: 2021
