ZRL moots joint ventures with DRC

ROGERS KALERO writes@SunZambianPLANS are underway for the Zambia Railways Limited (ZRL) to engage the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on how best cargo delivery can be enhanced, ZRL board Chairperson Edward Chabala has said.ZRL, the board chairperson said, would work towards revamping the railway network in the countryDr Chabala said there was tremendous potential to revamp the railway network in Zambia through joint investment partnerships with neighbouring countries.He was speaking in Kitwe at the ZRL inter mine head offices before touring the company’s infrastructure in the city.“Inspections conducted by the board of directors in Kabwe and Ndola has revealed that the company has tremendous potential to revamp the railway network by working beyond borders of Zambia through joint partnerships with neighbouring countries.“So this being the case, plans are underway for the ZRL to engage the government of DRC to see how best cargo delivery could be enhanced to revamp the railway network in the country,” Dr Chabala saidDr Chabala said one of the identified challenges was shortage of cargo to deliver to clients because the most competitive transport network was the road network which most clients opted to use due to its efficiency.“Shortage of cargo to deliver to clients by rail has been one of the major challenges. There is no cargo to deliver because most clients prefer using road network due to its efficiency.“So, as new board of directors of ZRL, we have seen great potential of the amount of cargo we can pick up for the clients to revamp the railway network in Zambia and this can be done through a joint investment partnerships,” he saidDr Chabala said that there was a client who had 300,000 tonnes of cargo that could be moved through rail per annum and required about 800 meters connection to the ZRL infrastructure.He said his team would work tirelessly to make rail a viable option for cargo transportation to unlock its potential.“In order for the company to realize its potential to deliver effective services to clients, the team has embarked on a tour of facilities countrywide to identify challenges and solutions.“Apart from the ongoing tour, it had been observed that there was need for a reconnection of a 12 kilometre stretch to the rail line which will greatly enhance cargo delivery,” he said. The Sun