The Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR) is a

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...

, operating trains along the

Benguela railway The Benguela Railway () is a 3 ft 6 in gauge railways, Cape gauge railway line that runs through Angola from west to east, being the largest and most important railway line in the country. It also connects to Tenke, Democratic Republic of the C ...

corridor from the coast of Angola into the

Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

Route

The railway runs from

Lobito Lobito is a municipality in Angola. It is located in Benguela Province, on the Atlantic Coast north of the Catumbela Estuary. The Lobito municipality had a population of 393,079 in 2014. History The city was founded in 1843 and owes its existe ...

, on Angola's Atlantic coast, 1700km eastwards to

Kolwezi Kolwezi or Kolwesi is the capital city of Lualaba Province in the south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, west of Likasi. It has an airport and a railway to Lubumbashi. Just outside of Kolwezi there is the static inverter plant of the ...

in the

(DRC), with a proposed link to

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

Joint venture

The Lobito Atlantic Railway is a joint venture between

Trafigura Trafigura Group Pte. Ltd. is a Singaporean-based multinational commodities company, with major regional hubs in Geneva, Houston, Montevideo and Mumbai, founded in 1993. The company trades in base metals and energy. It is the world's largest pri ...

Mota-Engil Mota-Engil is a Portuguese group in the sectors of civil construction, public works, port operations, waste, water, and logistics. The chairman of the board of directors is António Mota and Gonçalo Moura Martins is the company's CEO. Jorge C ...

, and Vecturis, an independent rail operator. Trafigura plans to invest $455 million in Angola and up to $100 million in DR Congo. The G7

Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment The Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII or PGI) is a collaborative effort by Group of Seven (G7) to fund infrastructure projects in developing nations based on the trust principles of the Blue Dot Network. It is intended ...

(PGI) prioritizes infrastructure projects in developing countries, including through a series of investments in the Lobito Corridor to connect the African continent from sea to sea. In October 2023, PGI signed an MOU between the U.S., Angola, the DRC, the EU, Zambia, the

African Development Bank The African Development Bank Group (AfDB, also known as BAD in French) is a multilateral development finance institution, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and ...

, and

Africa Finance Corporation Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) is a pan-African Multilateral Development Financial Institution established in 2007 by sovereign African states to provide pragmatic solutions to Africa's infrastructure deficit and challenging operating env ...

to develop the Corridor, initiating a new rail line expansion to Zambia. In alliance, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), in February 2024, approved a $250 million investment, increased, in June 2024, with a $553 million loan for development of the LAR.

Operations

The joint venture was awarded the concession to manage the Lobito rail corridor for 30 years in 2022. A ceremony was held in Lobito on 4 July 2023 to mark the transfer, attended by the presidents of Angola, DR Congo, and

. The LAR will provide "a faster and safer route" for passenger trains in Angola, including the " Ombaka Express". There are also plans to improve connectivity for copper and cobalt mines in DR Congo, especially Kamoa-Kakula. The railway anticipates operating at least 1555 wagons and 30 locomotives in Angola; more if DR Congo is included, with the initial 275 wagons ordered from a South African manufacturer in June 2024. ''MV Lindsaylou'', a bulk cargo vessel, was the first ship to dock at the LAR mineral terminal at the

Port of Lobito The Port of Lobito is an Angolan port located in the city of Lobito, in the province of Benguela. It is connected to the commercial area of the city and the neighborhood of Canata. It is located in Lobito Bay, which is separated from the Atlant ...

, launching the venture's port operation in Angola on July 12, 2024. The cargo ship held sulphur to be transferred to LAR cargo trains for shipment to the DRC and used in refined copper production in the Katanga region.Consortium receives maiden vessel at Port of Lobito as concession takes shape
Mining Weekly. Access date: 2024-08-23

References

{{reflist Railway lines in Angola International railway lines Railway lines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Joint ventures

Route

Joint venture

Operations

See also

References