THE Zambian government has urged its mining sector to transfer more freight to rail instead of using roads despite concerns by miners that the country’s rail network does not have sufficient capacity. The country’s rail network currently has 5% market share.
This was in terms of a law promulgated in January which compels mining companies to move up to 30% of their production by rail. “We are proceeding with the implementation plan,” said Zambia’s transport minister Brian Mushimba in a report by Reuters on Tuesday.
South African state-run logistics firm Transnet will lease locomotives and wagons to Zambia Railways to boost its capacity to handle bulk cargo, said Reuters. The Chamber of Mines in Zambia said the potential impact on the mining industry had not been properly considered.
