Angola's Railway Revival: A Critical Look at the Lobito Atlantic Railway Project

The Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR) is on track to secure a significant loan from the U. S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) by the end of this year. This loan, amounting to $533 million, is crucial for upgrading 1, 300 kilometers of railway infrastructure in Angola. The upgrade aims to facilitate the transport of minerals vital for the global transition to cleaner energy. The LAR consortium, which includes Trafigura, Mota-Engil, and Vecturis SA, was granted a 30-year concession by Angola in 2022. This concession allows the consortium to operate the railway and provide a swift route for exporting copper and cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo through the Lobito port. Despite political shifts, such as President Donald Trump's reversal of Biden-era climate and energy policies, the consortium's CEO, Nicholas Fournier, remains optimistic. He emphasizes that the loan deal is purely a commercial transaction, not a geopolitical one. Fournier notes that the legal teams are finalizing the details and expects the deal to be completed by the end of the year. The consortium has already committed $555 million for upgrade work. Fournier anticipates that the railway's capacity will double by 2026, with plans to transport 40, 000 tons of cargo in each direction monthly. This would result in an annual capacity of 1. 5 million tons by the end of the decade. Currently, the railway primarily transports copper and cobalt to the Lobito port for export. It also carries sulphur to DRC mines, along with agricultural commodities and industrial products from the port.