‘Game changer': why Chinese rail contractors have East Africa in their sights
Published: 12:00pm, 6 Feb 2025 Updated: 3:09pm, 6 Feb 2025 Chinese rail contractors are consolidating their foothold in East Africa as part of a twin effort to improve the region's connectivity and tap into its abundant reserves of strategic minerals. Last week, a consortium of Chinese companies won a US$2.15 billion deal to build a railway line linking Tanzania's main port of Dar es Salaam with Burundi's nickel mines. It was the third contract of its kind to be awarded to firms from China and will take 72 months to deliver, including a 12-month observation period. Financing is through a concessional loan from the African Development Bank .
Landlocked Burundi, with an estimated 185 million tonnes of nickel, is among 10 countries known to have important deposits of the metal – one of the critical minerals that are in high demand as the world rushes towards a green energy transition.
Once completed, the 282km (175 miles) line to be built by the consortium – which includes China Railway Engineering Group and China Railway Engineering Design and Consulting Group Co – is expected to move 3 million tonnes of ore per year. Masanja Kungu Kadogosa, director general of the Tanzania Railways Corporation, reaffirmed its commitment to the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project that will ultimately link Tanzania, Burundi and the DR Congo .
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