SA escalates regional rail wars

In a media statement to mark the groundbreaking ceremony of the $2 billion project a week ago, South African logistics parastatal, Transnet, revealed advanced plans to build a line from Lothair in Mpumalanga inside the country and Sidvokodvo Junction in Swaziland, stretching outwards to the coast to Richard's Bay inside South Africa.

The 146km project is viewed by industry observers as SA's reaction to a threat by regional countries' initiatives to circumvent SA's overloaded railway infrastructure.