Firm to start hauling fuel to Lilongwe this month
Nacala Logistics, a concessionaire that operates the country’s railway infrastructure, has unveiled plans to start hauling fuel apart from the dry cargo it is already moving between Blantyre and Lilongwe.
Making a presentation on Friday in Lilongwe during a conference on Public Private Partnerships convened by the Public Private Partnership Commission, the company’s external affairs specialist Joyce Malongo said the railway section between Balaka and Lilongwe is now fully functional, following completion of the rehabilitation works after some sections had been washed away by floods.
Figures from Nacala Logistics show that it costs an average of $0.06 (about K105) to $0.08 (about K140) per tonne per kilometre to transport goods by rail while freight or road transport costs $0.10 (about K175) to $0.12 (about K210) per tonne per kilometre.
But Malongo allayed the fears that this would take away business for truckers, saying this will have a greater good by providing more local distribution business for road transporters.
She said: “We prefer to work with truck owners as partners because we can’t get to the last mile delivery.
“We are not competitors, we should be partners. Even the delivery within the country is more profitable to those who do their business well.”
Malongo further said the railway was already moving dry cargo from Zambia to Kanengo by road for railway connection to Nacala Port in Mozambique, a breakthrough for the company’s business to service Zambia through the railway route.
However, works are underway to fix the railway stretch between Lilongwe and Chipata in Zambia.
The firm has also started transporting coal to Lilongwe with the first delivery to Shayona Cement Company, giving new logistical improvement to the Central Region industries that use coal.
However, Nacala Logistics could not commit to opening up the Northern Region unless a comprehensive study suggested a business sense of that venture.
PPPC chief executive officer Patrick Kabambe said the feasibility study is about to start on the proposed route for the Northern Region.
He said since the country uses the northern corridor as one of the main trade routes, the railway line could make economic sense, generating over $140 million (about K245 billion) in revenue annually.
Minister of Transport and Public Works Jacob Hara is quoted as having said they signed a $2.18 billion (about K3.8 trillion) agreement with China Railway Signal and Communication Corp. International on behalf of the Malawian Government to construct a railway network in the country that connects the Northern Region.
On passenger service, Nacala Logistics said it has now passed the 400 000 mark per year with 2023 reaching over 442 000 and as of June this year, they had already served 265 000.
