A recent state visit to Ghana by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has already started bearing fruit as railway giants Transnet, Ghana Railway Company Limited (GRCL) and Ghana Railway Development Authority (GRDA) have signed a railway revitalization agreement.
The agreement will see Transnet International Holdings (TIH) attempt to re-open Ghana’s narrow gauge line between Takoradi and Tarkwa as part of efforts to restore the Western Railway Line.
TIH CEO, Petrus Fusi, said the project is a joint-effort between Transnet and the Ghanaian rail entities, with the restoration of the line set to ease the burden on the supply-chain industry in Ghana.
“Transnet is committed to working with local Ghanaian companies in order to achieve the objectives of the project. Through this partnership with GRCL and GRDA, Transnet strongly believes that it will significantly contribute to the revival of Ghana’s railway infrastructure and operations and return it to full reliability,” said Fusi.
“This is expected to result in a shift of transporting bulk cargo from road to rail and contribute to a reduction in Ghana’s cost of logistics.”
The agreement, which was signed into effect by Ramaphosa and his Ghanaian counterpart Nana Akufo-Addo yesterday, will see the formation of a joint project team tasked to investigate the current state of infrastructure and operations at GRCL.
According to a press release from Transnet, the first phase of this major railway project will entail the following:
- Rehabilitating and maintaining the line
- Refurbishing and maintaining the existing rolling stock (locomotives and wagons)
- Supplying additional rolling stock
- Jointly operating the line
- Skills development.
