From April 10 to April 11 in 2019, at Luanda local time, the first Angolan Seminar on Railway Technology was held in Luanda Advanced Institute of Transportation and Logistics Management. The seminar was attended by Ricardo, Minister of Transport, Walter Mar, Secretary of State for Land Transport, Lima, Secretary of State for Air and Port Transport, O’donnell, Secretary of State for National Railways, the related institutions of Railway Industry, and Representatives of Chinese and Portuguese enterprises, etc.

Ricardo, Minister of Transport, makes the opening speech

The seminar started at 9am on the April 10. Ricardo, Minister of Transport, makes the opening speech

Ricardo, Angolan Minister of Transport (Middle), Lima, Secretary of State for Air and Port Transport (Left), O’donnell, Secretary of State for National Railways (Right)

As the general contractor of Luanda New Airport’s Railway Extension Project, Five Complex Hub Stations’ Construction Project of Luanda Railway and Mocamedes Railway Overhaul Project, Guo Xiaomin, Executive Vice President, Liu Yanxiang, Vice General Manager, Wang Yuze, Vice Minister of Trade, Lin Jianwei and Liu Yi, Business Managers, and others of Lei Jun-CA Construction, Limited of China Hyway Group Limited were invited to attend the seminar.

Seminar Site

This meeting is mainly to discuss how to improve the railway transportation capacity and strengthen the safe operation and management of the railway, aiming at solving the safety problems existing in the existing railway operation process, so as to promote the economic growth of the railway transportation. Luanda Railway Bureau, Benguela Railway Bureau and Mocamedes Railway Bureau reported respectively on the operation and existing problems of the railways.

Report in Progress

The Technical Director of Mocamedes Railway Bureau reported that, as the only railway line in Southern Angola, Mocamedes Railway starts from Namibe port in the west to Meilongai city in Kundao Kubango province in the east, and there are two branch lines – one branch from New Dongo to Chamina, and another branch from Oak Forest to Yangba, with a total of main line of 856 kilometers long. China Hyway Group, as the general contractor of the EPC of Moçâmedes Railway, started the construction in 2007 and completed the work of pavement of the whole line by the end of 

At present, there are several trains in operation: including the long distance passenger train from Lubango to Meilongai City, runs round-trip from both terminals once a day, with carrying 637 people; the special train for students between Lubango, Nangongbei and Poiares runs several round-trips a day, which can serve 450 people; the goods train from Lubango to Namibe can carry 1000 tons of goods for a single trip; and other trains with irregular departure dates, etc. The operation of the railway has greatly improved the traffic conditions in the southern provinces, becoming an important link between the provinces of Nambe, Huila and Kwando Kubango, and shortening the distance between cities. For examples, the local people transports poultry from Lubango to Meilongai for sale, and merchants transport timber from Meilongai to Namibe Port for export by railway, and the like. It has effectively developed the economy along the railway, improved the living standards of the local people, created more jobs and opportunities, and contributed to the economic development of Angola as a whole. With the deepening of railway construction, Angolan society and economy will set foot on the fast track and develop towards a better, faster and more convenient direction.

The Technical Director of Mocamedes Railway Bureau makes a report

Thanks for Liu Yi's contribution from Lei Jun-CA Construction, Limited