Private consortiums from Taiwan and Japan signed a memorandum of understanding Tuesday for the purchase of bullet trains worth up to NT$95 billion (about $3 billion) for Taiwan's planned high-speed railway in what is the largest-ever procurement deal between the two sides.

With the signing at the headquarters of the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THRSC) in Taipei, the Mitsui & Co.-led Taiwan Shinkansen Consortium has become the sole negotiator for the sale of the core system of the high-speed railway, THRSC Chairperson Nita Ing said.

The Japanese side also committed to becoming one of the major shareholders in the Taiwanese consortium, she said.

Taiwan's 345-km, high-speed railway will use trains modeled after Japan's latest bullet train, the Nozomi 700E, which West Japan Railway put in service March.