According to a note from the Porto do Lobito communication office, released this Tuesday, so far are Mota-Engil, the Chinese CITIC and CR20, the Swiss Trafigura (who paid General Leopoldino Fragoso do Nascimento 'Dino' 390 million for its shares in Puma Energy) and DP World, from Dubai, which won the concession of the Port of Luanda for the next 20 years.
The company representatives visited the Benguela Railroad (CFB) General Workshops and the location where the Goods Transit Terminal will be installed, in Compão, starting a series of technical visits to verify the current status and operational status of the infrastructure.
The five competitors also visited the Porto do Lobito Mineral Terminal, which was also part of the international concession tender.
The delegation, which includes representatives from the CFB and the Empresa Portuária do Lobito, then went on a special train to Luau to visit the main infrastructures located along the railway, passing through the provinces of Huambo, Bié and the city of Luena.
The international tender for the concession, shared management, maintenance of railway infrastructure, freight transport services and support logistics of the Lobito Corridor was launched on 8 September and the deadline for submission of proposals runs until 7 December.
With the concession, the Executive wants to create a private capital company, a Special Purpose Entity (SPE), to be controlled by private operators or by a single entity with a minority share of the State.
This company will be responsible for the operation, operation and maintenance of the Lobito/Luau railway infrastructure, with the possibility of building a branch connecting to Zambia; the rail freight service on the Lobito/Luau railway; the construction, operation and operation of two freight transit terminals to support the rail freight transport service on the Lobito/Luau railway, one in Lobito and the other in Luau; the management of the training center in the province of Huambo and the operation, operation and maintenance of the railway workshops.
The concession has a term of 30 years, during which the concessionaire (SPE) will take over the transport of large cargoes, with a greater predominance of minerals and fuels, while the public transport service for passengers and small cargo will remain under the management of the railway from Benguela.
According to information available on the Angolan Government's official website, the intention is to maximize the potential of the Lobito Corridor's railway infrastructure, increase exports and indirect investments in multimodal platforms, terminals and other infrastructure along the line, to "promote the economic, social and cultural development of local communities".
The reactivation of the Lobito Corridor also aims to reinforce regional integration, taking into account the possibility of interconnecting the Atlantic and Indian oceans, with the connection of the railway to the Port of Dar-es-Salaam, in Tanzania.
The operation of the Lobito Corridor involves additional investments along the Lobito/Benguela/Luau railway, including the integration of the contiguous railway across the border into the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the construction of a branch to the Republic of Zambia.
According to the executive, around 1.9 billion dollars were recently invested in the reconstruction of the railway and in the connection with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), "whose profits may now have the opportunity to be recovered".
