Lobito Corridor: DRC Accelerates the Modernization of Its Strategic Copper Route
In Lualaba province, Kolwezi is confirming its status as the epicenter of Africa’s copper industry. Every day, freight trains stop there to transport hundreds of tonnes of minerals to the port of Lobito, located nearly 1,500 kilometers away.
At the heart of this dynamic, the Lobito railway corridor is entering a new phase with a vast modernization project aimed at increasing the Democratic Republic of Congo’s mining exports.
This infrastructure aims to significantly reduce transport time between Kolwezi and Lobito. Eventually, Congolese minerals could reach the Atlantic in just one week, compared with more than a month currently. The Congolese government hopes to double, within a year, the volume of minerals exported by rail.
Infrastructure Still Fragile
Despite its strategic importance, the railway line still faces several challenges. Aging infrastructure continues to slow traffic, while acts of sabotage regularly weaken the railway tracks. Local residents sometimes dig under the sleepers to recover certain materials, causing derailments and endangering the movement of trains.
There is also a technical problem linked to the incompatibility between Angolan trains and the Congolese railway network. At the border, goods must be unloaded and then reloaded onto other trains, extending logistics delays and increasing transport costs.
A Strategic Corridor for Critical Minerals
The Lobito Corridor now occupies a central place in the DRC’s economic strategy. Authorities point out that nearly 65% of the country’s mining industries are concentrated in Lualaba province, making this railway a key route for the export of copper and cobalt.
This importance has been reinforced by recent agreements between the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United States on critical minerals. One article of the strategic partnership signed between the two countries directly concerns the Lobito Corridor, seen as a major lever to secure the United States’ supply of strategic minerals while supporting Congolese economic development.
A Battle for Economic Influence
Beyond mining transport, the project also illustrates the geostrategic competition surrounding African resources. The United States supports the modernization of the Lobito Corridor, while China is strengthening its investments in other regional railway infrastructure, particularly the TAZARA Corridor linking Southern Africa to the Indian Ocean.
With this modernization, the DRC hopes not only to improve the fluidity of its mining exports, but also to consolidate its position among the world’s leading producers of copper and cobalt.
M&B / TV5 Monde
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