Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has selected preferred engineering and construction contractors for an 830-kilometre railway linking Zambia’s Copperbelt to Angola’s Atlantic coast, advancing a project estimated to cost up to $5bn towards implementation.

The pan-African infrastructure financier announced on October 27 that a consortium comprising Italy’s Webuild (BIT:WBD), Portugal’s Mota-Engil (Euronext Lisbon:EGL) and Turkey’s IC İçtaş Construction had been selected as preferred bidder for the Zambian section.

A second consortium comprising Mota-Engil and Brazil’s Odebrecht Engineering and Construction was selected for the Angolan section following an international competitive tender.

Mota-Engil’s role in both consortia extends its presence along the corridor. The group is part of the Lobito Atlantic Railway consortium with Trafigura and Vecturis, which operates the existing line from Lobito to Luau, and in August signed a 30-year concession for the Dilolo–Sakania section in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Contract negotiations will begin in November, with AFC aiming to conclude engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreements within eight to 12 weeks, subject to satisfactory technical, commercial and legal terms.

The selections do not constitute final construction contracts, and AFC has not announced financial close for the new railway.

Railway to connect Copperbelt with Atlantic coast

The Zambia Lobito Railway will run from Chingola in Zambia’s copper-producing region to Luacano in eastern Angola, connecting with the existing Benguela railway and providing access to the Port of Lobito.

Approximately 550km of new track will be constructed in Zambia, with the remaining 280km in Angola.

The project is intended to provide an alternative export route for copper, cobalt and other minerals from southern and central Africa, reducing reliance on longer transport corridors through southern and eastern Africa.

The line will compete with the Tanzania–Zambia Railway (TAZARA) to Dar es Salaam, where Chinese state-owned China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and four Chinese partners plan a $1.2bn rehabilitation under a 30-year concession.

According to the project developer’s plans, the connection could reduce freight transit times to approximately seven days from as much as 16 days on alternative routes. The estimates are projected benefits rather than verified operating results.

The railway is also expected to carry agricultural commodities, petroleum products and general freight, supporting cross-border trade and industrial development.

AFC president and chief executive Samaila Zubairu said the project would support mineral-processing and agricultural value chains while creating employment and industrial opportunities along the corridor.

The railway is being developed through Trans African Rail Company FZCO, the project holding company, and separate project companies in Zambia and Angola.

Feasibility studies and concession agreements were completed in 2024, followed by an intergovernmental agreement in 2025 and preliminary engineering designs.

Financing and construction timetable remain unresolved

The proposed railway could cost between $3bn and $5bn, including rolling stock, according to an environmental and social impact report by the Zambia Environmental Management Agency reported by Semafor in April. AFC has not disclosed the value of the proposed construction contracts or an updated project budget.

AFC committed in December 2024 to mobilising up to $500mn for the railway through various financial instruments, although that commitment does not establish that the funds have been fully raised or disbursed.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) approved a $255mn loan and a $10mn grant from the Mattei Plan-linked Rome Process financing facility in August to support Zambia’s participation in the corridor, including approximately 550km of new railway, a 105km road upgrade and trade facilitation.

Italy’s Cassa Depositi e Prestiti provided AFC in June 2025 with a €250mn facility backed by export credit agency SACE to support Italian participation in African infrastructure and renewable-energy projects, including the Lobito corridor. The facility is not exclusively earmarked for the new railway.

The commitments and financing arrangements cover different activities and should not be treated as fully secured funding for the project’s estimated construction cost.

Zubairu separately told Bloomberg on October 27 that construction could begin within six to eight months, suggesting a start around April–June 2027.

However, the project’s published development roadmap still targets financial close in the fourth quarter of 2027, with construction expected to follow. AFC has not explained how the earlier construction expectation would be reconciled with that timetable or whether preliminary works could proceed before full financing is secured.

AFC senior director Amadou Wadda said in April that construction would begin immediately after financing was secured, with completion expected by 2030. He said AFC had secured initial cargo agreements covering 1mn tonnes a year, about half the minimum throughput required for commercial viability.

The new railway is distinct from the existing 1,300km Angolan line, where AFC announced financial close on a separate $753mn package in July to support rehabilitation and operations along the established route to Lobito.

The wider corridor has attracted backing from the United States, European Union and Italy, which has incorporated the project into its Mattei Plan for African infrastructure development.

The selection of preferred contractors marks a significant step towards building the Zambia-Angola connection, but construction remains dependent on final EPC agreements, financing and completion of outstanding implementation requirements.

See IntelliNews: Africa Finance Corp. aims for December 2027 financial close for key Zambian railway project
See IntelliNews: AFC reaches $753mn financial close for Angola’s Lobito Corridor railway project
See IntelliNews: DR Congo signs $1.26bn Lobito Corridor rail concession with Mota-Engil
See IntelliNews: Five Chinese firms collaborate for $1.2bn revamp of key Zambia-Tanzania rail corridor