In October 2011, China Railway Group (CREC) was appointed main contractor to the Ethiopian Railways for a $US1.2 billion reconstruction project involving the 683km Ethiopian section of the metre-gauge Addis Ababa-Djibouti line, currently out of use. It is understood that the new line is to be on 1,435mm gauge. The first phase covers 317km between Addis Ababa and Mieso. India has allocated $300 million towards the project and Ethiopia is currently looking for a further $300 million.
The second phase comprises the 339km section of the route from Mieso, through Dire Dawa to Dewale on the border with Djibouti. On 16 December, the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation signed an agreement in respect of this. Here the Ethiopian government is to meet 40% of the cost, with the rest funded through a soft loan from China. The government of Djibouti is expected to construct the final 100km from Dewale to the Doraleh container terminal on the Red Sea.
Original article [Railways Africa]
