According to a statement from the Ministry of Transport, the value of the signature premium - around 100 million dollars - is in line with the amount of other concessions in the transport sector in Angola, having made it possible to differentiate competitors based on their financial capacity compared to to the size of the assets in question.
With the rents negotiated, the State will raise more than 2 billion dollars: 319 million in the first ten years, 797 million between the 11th and 20th, and 919 million in the last 10 years.
The concessionaire will invest 56 million dollars in infrastructure, 73 million in equipment and rolling stock and an additional 4.3 million in various activities.
In terms of cargo to be transported, forecasts point to 1678 tonnes in the fifth year of concession, 2982 tonnes in the 10th year, 4979 tonnes in the twentieth year, and 4979 tonnes in the 30th and final year.
The concession lasts for 30 years, and can be extended to 50 years if the concessionaire chooses to build the Luacano (Moxico) – Jimbe (Zambia) rail branch.
In the statement, the Angolan ministry highlights the benefits of this award for the country, including “the impact on the development of industries that are heavily dependent on the logistics chain, such as agriculture and mining, and the consequent creation of jobs in each of them” .
It also emphasizes that “opportunities will be created for the development of small businesses adjacent to rail transport and a competitive rail alternative to road transport, capable of contributing to the reduction of freight transport tariffs”.
According to Transport Minister Ricardo Viegas d'Abreu, quoted in the press release, the operation of the Lobito Corridor will contribute to local and regional development, around the railway line, and may represent a contribution to the Gross Domestic Product estimated between 1.6 to 3.4 billion dollars (1.56 to 3.32 billion euros).
The consortium includes the group of Portuguese origin Mota-Engil, which has been in Angola for over 70 years and is currently one of the main providers of infrastructure construction services worldwide; the Swiss multinational Trafigura, one of the world's leading commodity traders; and Vecturis, a railway operator of Belgian origin, with strong rail transport activity (passengers, minerals and commercial cargo) in African countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Cameroon, Madagascar, Côte d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Algeria, and also in Brazil, Russia and Pakistan.
The Lobito Corridor starts in the Port of Lobito and crosses the Angolan territory towards the east, with a railway line of about 1,300 kilometers, which crosses the mining regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the province of Katanga and the so-called copper belt. in Zambia.
