Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) on 29 January signed a US$2.2 billion contract for the construction of lots 7 and 8 of its electric standard-gauge railway (SGR), which will run for 282km from Uvinza and across the border to Musongati in Burundi.

A team of China Railway Engineering Group (CREGC) and China Railway Engineering Design and Consulting Group (CREDC) will build the rail sections as part of the 693km second phase of Tanzania’s SGR project.

The scheme is set to be implemented over 72 months, including a 12-month waiting period.

The new line will branch off from the Tabora-Kigoma section (Lot 6) of the Tanzanian SGR at Uvinza and run to the Malagarasi River on the Burundian border over a length of 180km. From Malagarasi, the line will extend to Musongati over 102km.

The work includes building a 1km bridge connecting Tanzania and Burundi, designed to carry rail and road traffic, along with an estimated seven stations and one freight terminal in the Musongati area.

The new rail sections are planned to facilitate the export of nickel from Musongati via Uvinza to Tanzania’s gateway Port of Dar Es Salaam.

Tanzania and Burundi signed a cooperation agreement for the construction of the railway in January 2022, with TRC tasked with procuring the contractor and overseeing the construction of the project on behalf of both countries.

The 411km Tabora-Kigoma section is being constructed by a team of China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) and China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC), which was awarded the US$2.2 billion design and build deal in December 2022. Work had reached 7.12% completion on the scheme as of late January this year and is expected to be completed by December 2026.

In December 2023, the African Development Bank (AfDB) approved US$696.4 million in financing for Burundi and Tanzania to proceed with the second phase of the SGR project.

The SGR is planned to become the backbone for Tanzania’s central trade corridor, connecting the Port of Dar Es Salaam to Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. The railway is intended to reduce road congestion, with each freight train expected to transport up to 10,000 tonnes of cargo, equivalent to taking 500 trucks off the road.

A feasibility study is currently underway for the extension of the SGR line from Musongati to Kindu in the DRC. In March 2023, the feasibility study and preliminary engineering design contract for the project was awarded to South Africa’s Zutari.

Meanwhile, TRC is also looking to build a 371km stretch running from Isaka to Rusumo in northwestern Tanzania on the border with Rwanda, which will form part of the Isaka-Kigali SGR railway linking to Rwanda’s capital city.

According to TRC, the completion of the SGR network will connect the southern Mtwara-Mbamba Bay railway, which connects the Indian Ocean to Lake Nyasa, passing through regions with iron ore, coal and graphite. It will also serve the Mchuchuma and Liganga coal and iron mines.

Top photo: Tanzania SGR (Source: TRC)