BEIJING, April 2 -- Bullet train maker China North Railway (CNR) has established a joint venture in Australia, its first such overseas partnership.

The new company, Pacific Rail Engineering Pty Ltd, is a 50-50 joint venture between CNR subsidiary Qiqihar Railway Rolling Stock and Australian firm B&W, according to a press release release posted on the CNR's website on Thursday.

While Qiqihar Railway Rolling Stock has exported over 12,000 wagons to Australia since 2000, the new venture will see it also provide freight train repair services, according to the release.

The joint venture was established after the recent merger of CNR and China South Railway, a move that was subject to anti-trust probes abroad.

Controlling China's entire high speed rail market, CNR and China South Railway announced on Dec. 30 that they would merge into a new company.

They said on March 11 that their merger had passed overseas antitrust scrutiny by several countries including Australia.