Tanzania Standard Gauge Railway

The Tanzania Standard Gauge Railway is a railway system, under construction, linking the country to the neighboring countries of Rwanda and Uganda, and through these two, to Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as part of East African Railway Master Plan. The new Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), is intended to replace the old, inefficient metre-gauge railway system.[1][2]

Tanzania Standard Gauge Railway
Overview
StatusUnder construction
TerminiDar es Salaam, Isaka
Rusumo, Mwanza
Service
TypeHeavy rail
Operator(s)Tanzania Railways Corporation
History
Opened2021
Technical
Line length1,800 km (1,100 mi)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification25 kV 50 Hz AC overhead catenary
Route map
OSM

Location

The railway system would consist of several major sections:

Dar es Salaam–Morogoro Section

This section, measuring 300 kilometres (186 mi), was contracted to a 50/50 consortium comprising Yapi Merkezi of Turkey and Mota-Engil of Portugal. Construction began in April 2017.[2] Partial funding for this section, amounting to US$1.2 billion, was borrowed from the Export Credit Bank of Turkey.[3] As of February 2019, 42 percent of this section was reported as complete.[4] In May 2019, it was announced that the current phase of the project is 60 percent complete and that the first passenger trains are expected to start service in December 2019. As of June 2020, the work has been completed by 82 percent. There will be six stations: Dar es Salaam, Pugu, Soga, Ruvu, Ngerengere and Morogoro. Three trains will make daily round trips.[5]

Morogoro–Makutopora Section

This section was also contracted to the consortium that is constructing the Dar es Salaam–Morogoro Section. The line stretches from Morogoro to the capital Dodoma and onward to Makutopora in Manyoni District, Singida Region.[6] It measures 426 kilometres (265 mi).[7] In September 2018, the government of Tanzania secured a soft loan from Standard Chartered Bank, amounting to US$1.46 billion, for the funding of this section of the country's SGR.[3]

The stations after Morogoro will be Mkata, Kilosa, Kidete, Gulwe, Igunda, Dodoma, Bahi and Makutopora.

Makutupora–Isaka Section

This section, measuring 435 kilometres (270 mi), stretching from Makutupora in Singida Region through Tabora to Isaka, is yet to be awarded to a contractor, as of September 2018.[3]

Isaka–Mwanza Section

This section, measuring approximately 341 kilometres (212 mi), takes the SGR line to the city of Mwanza, on the southern shores of Lake Victoria. In January 2021, The Citizen newspaper reported that two Chinese companies had been selected to construct this section of the SGR. China Civil Engineering Construction (CCEC) and China Railway Construction Company (CRCC), were selected to carry out the work at a contract price of approximately TZS:3 trillion (approx. US$1.3 billion).[8] Later that month, The EastAfrican reported that Tanzania had secured funding worth $1.32 billion, through the Government of China, for the purpose of building this section of the SGR.[9]

Isaka–Rusumo Section

This stretch of the SGR is component of the Isaka–Kigali Standard Gauge Railway, and measures approximately 371 kilometres (231 mi). Construction of this section is budgeted at US$942 million.[10] In April 2018, the EastAfrican newspaper reported that the World Bank had expressed its willingness to fund the Isaka-Kigali Standard Gauge Railway.[1]

Overview

This 1435 mm (4 ft ​8 1⁄2 in) railway line is intended to ease the transfer of goods between the port of Dar es Salaam and the cities of Kigali, in Rwanda and subsequently to Bujumbura, in Burundi, and to Goma, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. From the lake port of Mwanza, surface water ferries are expected to transport goods between Mwanza and Port Bell and Bukasa Inland Port, in Kampala, Uganda's capital city.[11][12][13] The SGR system in Tanzania, in conformity with neighboring Rwanda and Uganda is designed to use electricity to power its locomotives.[14]

The SGR is expected to accommodate passenger trains traveling at 160 kilometres (99 mi) per hour and cargo trains traveling at 120 kilometres (75 mi) per hour.[7]

Terminals

Phase 1

The first phase is all set to be completed in December 2020. It will cover the distance of 202 kilometres (126 mi), from the city Dar es Salaam to Morogoro.[15]

Phase 2

The second phase covers a distance of approximately 348 kilometres (216 mi), from Morogoro via Dodoma to Makutopora.[16]

Phase 3

The third phase will cover from Makutupora to Tabora (294km).

Phase 4

The fourth phase will cover from Tabora to Isaka (130km).

Phase 5

The fifth phase will cover from Isaka to Mwanza (249km)

Funding

Up until February 2020, the government of Tanzania has been using locally generated funds and short-term temporary loans to fund the construction of the first two phases of this standard gauge railway project.[17]

In February 2020, the government received a syndicated loan worth US$1.46 billion, towards the completion of the first two phases of the national SGR. The financing package has Standard Chartered as lead arranger and the Export Credit Agencies of Denmark and Sweden, as major funding sources.[18] The combined contract value for the first two phases is US$2.35 billion with US$950 million worth of funding to be organized by the Tanzania Ministry of Finance and the remaining US$1.45 billion by Yapı Merkezi. [19]

See also

References
  1. Olingo, Allan (29 April 2018). "Tanzania turns to World Bank to fund its modern railway project". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  2. TanzaniaInvest.com (14 April 2017). "Dar Es Salaam-Morogoro Standard Gauge Railway Works Start". Dar es Salaam: TanzaniaInvest.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  3. Olingo, Allan (15 September 2018). "Tanzania secures $1.46 billiob SGR loan from Stanchart". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  4. Nachilongo, Hellen (12 February 2019). "Construction of Dar-Moro SGR reaches 42pc". The Citizen (Tanzania). Dar es Salaam. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
  5. Allan Olingo (11 May 2019). "Dar SGR project inches closer to reality as locomotives to test phase one arrive". The EastAfrican via Pressreader.com. Nairobi. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  6. Raimund Vogelsberger, Dimitri Militschenko (30 August 2019). "Non-Technical Summary: Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for the Standard Gauge Railway Line (SGR) Project, Dar es Salaam – Makutopora, Tanzania" (PDF). yapimerkezi.com.tr.
  7. Xinhua (15 March 2018). "Tanzanian president launches construction of new phase of standard gauge railway". Beijing: Xinhua. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  8. The Citizen Reporter (7 January 2021). "Two Chinese companies to construct Tanzania's fifth lot of SGR". The Citizen (Tanzania). Dar es Salaam. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  9. Dorothy Ndalu (11 January 2021). "Magufuli secures $1.32b China support for Tanzania SGR". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  10. Kabona, Esiara (29 January 2018). "Isaka-Kigali SGR works to start in October". The EastAfrican. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  11. Barigaba, Julius (27 June 2018). "Uganda resumes cargo operations on Lake Victoria after a decade". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  12. Tairo, Apolinari (9 July 2018). "Tanzania unveils cargo train to Uganda". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  13. The Citizen Reporter (27 June 2018). "Tanzania's MV Umoja resumes Port Bell-Dar route after 10 years". The Citizen (Tanzania). Dar es Salaam. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  14. Olingo, Allan (18 March 2018). "Rwanda, Tanzania agree on electric SGR, opt for open tender". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  15. "Tanzania's standard gauge railway (SGR) to undergo formal testing". Construction Review Online. 4 February 2020.
  16. Globefeed.com (15 February 2020). "Distance between Morogoro, Tanzania and Makutupora, Tanzania". Globefeed.com. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  17. John Fidelis (19 November 2019). "Tanzania close to securing funding for second phase of SGR project". Nairobi: Construction Review Online.
  18. Emmanuel Onyango (15 February 2020). "Tanzania's SGR on track after govt secures $1.46b more for project". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  19. Başar Arioğlu (5 October 2018). "Yapı Merkezi Experience in Africa - EIC Federation" (PDF). Izmir. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
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