The Port of Lobito mineral terminal in Angola has received its first cargo vessel, signaling the start of port operations for the Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR) consortium – operator of the Lobito railway. The vessel carried 40,500 tons of sulphur, which will be transported to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) via the Lobito railway line – a cross-border railway connecting the port to mining operations in Zambia and the DRC.
The cargo will support refined copper production in the DRC and follows the start of rail operations in January 2024. Offloading will take place following the requisite environmental and safety procedures, using two automatic hoppers designed and manufactured in Angola.
According to Francisco Franca, President of the Board of Directors of LAR, “This marks the final step in bringing together all of the logistics required to operationalize and develop LAR to its full potential. LAR reaffirms its commitment to the most important logistics corridor in the region and to increasing the volumes of railway and port operations to achieve the strategic objectives of the Government of Angola.”
Since the start of operations, two international freight trains have travelled from the DRC to the Port of Lobito each week. Following planned upgrades to the railway – backed by a more than $800 million investment over the lifetime of the concession – transit will increase with six international freight trains expected per day.
