KENYA Railways Corporation (KRC) took delivery of a total of 430 wagons from China on March 4.
The flat wagons, with 70-tonne loading capacity or higher, have been built to two separate gauges. A fleet of 230 will run on the Chinese-built Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), while 200 will enter service on the existing KRC metre-gauge network.
The delivery is part of an overall order for 500 wagons, comprising 300 standard and 200 metre-gauge wagons. A further 30 are due to arrive at the Port of Mombasa in May, and the latest consignment follows on from 50 Chinese-built standard-gauge wagons received by KRC last month.
Mr Philip Mainga, KRC managing director, says the operator’s freight division has signed long-term contracts with several customers. The new wagons will be used to move containers, steel coil, tank containers, metal billets and road vehicles.
“The wagons are of various specifications to ensure that the cargo moved from the Port of Mombasa is able to move all the way to Kampala through the SGR/metre-gauge railway transshipment facility at Naivasha,” Mainga says.
Data from the Ministry of Roads and Transport shows a 21% increase in freight transported on the metre-gauge network in 2023. Additionally, freight transported on the SGR increased by 7% last year, with passenger numbers rising by 12%.
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