Maputo, 5 Jun (AIM) – The doubling of the track along the Ressano Garcia railway line, which links Mozambique and South Africa, from the Matola-Gare Administrative Post to Secogene, in Maputo province, over a stretch of about 50 kilometres, is due to be concluded by next September.
According to the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the publicly owned ports and rail company, CFM, Agostinho Langa Júnior, who a few days ago travelled the entire length of the line to assess the level of execution of the job, the work now in progress is estimated to cost about 82 million dollars, financed by CFM’s own funds.
“The evaluation that we are making is positive for the time being. The great concern was to be sure that the work is being done with quality and above all that the deadlines will be met and, from what we have seen, we believe that by the middle or end of September we will have the work, on both the bridges and the lines, concluded”, Langa said, cited in Monday’s issue of the Maputo daily “Notícias.”
Although the work is only 52 per cent complete, Langa expressed hope that the deadlines will be met, “because it is now the dry season and there will be no major interruptions in the activities.”
He explained that the duplication of the line aims to increase the capacity of the railroad and guarantee greater security in the circulation of trains.
He added that after conclusion of the work, the Ressano Garcia line will have the capacity to carry about 24 million tonnes of cargo a year, compared with the current 13 million tonnes.
Besides the duplication of the line, the activities include the construction of four bridges from scratch.
After Ressano Garcia, Langa surveyed the Goba line, which connects Mozambique and eSwatini, but clarified that on this railroad there is currently no plan for major works.
“At this moment, on the Goba Line we are not going to do a work of the scale that is under way on the Ressano Garcia track, but we will guarantee routine maintenance, especially at points that are presenting some defects”, he said.
(AIM)
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