LOBITO Atlantic Railway (LAR), which operates and maintains the 1067mm-gauge Lobito corridor in Angola and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has received the first batch of container wagons from an order for 275 placed earlier this year with Galison Manufacturing of South Africa.
The new wagons weigh 13.5 tonnes and are designed to each carry a single 40ft container or two 20ft containers. The first batch commences a series of weekly deliveries that will continue until 2026.
In July 2023, LAR began to operate and maintain the 1744km line from the port of Lobito in Angola to Kolwezi in the DRC, under a 30-year concession agreement signed in November 2022.
LAR is a consortium of Trafigura, Mota-Engil, and Vecturis. It is planning to invest $US 455m in Angola, including the procurement of 35 locomotives and 1555 wagons.
The wagons have been manufactured at the Galison plant in Welkom, southwest of Johannesburg.
“This strategic investment in new wagons is part of LAR's expansion and modernisation plan over the next three years,” LAR said in a statement. “The wagons include a modern pneumatic braking system and light steel structure, contributing to safer and more efficient transport operations.”
