Brazilians to run Uganda-Kenya rail
Posted: 08 Nov 2010, 08:50
Brazilians to run Uganda-Kenya rail
Thursday, 4th November, 2010
New Vision (Uganda)
RIFT Valley Railways Investments (RVR), the operator of the Kenya and Uganda railway lines, has signed a management and technical services agreement with América Latina LogÃstica (ALL).
Under the deal, LogÃstica, a leading Brazil-based rail group, will support RVR’s five-year rehabilitation and investment programme aimed at improving the safety and efficiency of rail operations across Kenya and Uganda, the firm said in a statement.
The first 24-month phase of the programme started this month, it added.
“LogÃstica are leading rail operators, who have proven their mettle in turnaround scenarios, including the much-studied privatisation of Brazil’s national railway,†Brown Ondego, the RVR executive chairman, said.
América Latina LogÃstica is the largest independent company of its kind in Latin America, where it operates railways and highways, serving clients across multiple countries.
Under the agreement, LogÃstica will provide RVR with key management and operational staff and oversee the transfer of its technologies.
“ALL will provide us proprietary technologies, including proven rail management software systems,†said Ondego.
He noted that the agreement was structured so that LogÃstica’s compensation is directly linked to specific operational and financial goals at RVR.
LogÃstica is the best emerging-markets rail operator, “and in bringing them to Kenya and Uganda, RVR is looking forward to a repeat of the successes it has accumulated in the past decade since Brazil privatised its rail sector.â€
Under the three-point rehabilitation programme, RVR will also replace worn-out rails in key areas.
According to the statement, the company is finalising its order for new rails with global suppliers.
The Brazilian firm will also kick-start a locomotive maintenance programme to improve reliability and enhance hauling capacity.
The third plank of the rehabilitation programme will see substantial investment in information technology systems throughout RVR, Ondego said.
LogÃstica has previously worked with RVR to develop the railway’s five-year investment and rehabilitation plan.
Rift Valley Railways Investment is the consortium charged with operating the national railways of Kenya and Uganda under a 21-year concession.
It is comprised of three main shareholders; Citadel Capital with a 51% stake, Transcentury 34% and Bomi Holdings 15%.
The consortium has pledged to invest $250m in the restructuring of the railway system.
Encroachment blocks loan for east Africa rail
By Helen Nyambura-Mwaura
Wed Nov 3, 2010 1:42pm GMT
NAIROBI (Reuters) - A company that runs railways in Kenya and Uganda has secured financing to rejuvenate the east African line but lenders will not disburse the cash until people living near the network are moved.
Rift Valley Railways Investments' (RVRI) Executive Director Brown Ondego said on Wednesday the rail needs $248 million to get it up and running in a minimum of 15 months.
The network suffers a derailment every other day, which costs the company between $1-1.5 million each month in delays and damages, the executive director said told Reuters.
It costs on average 20 percent less to send goods via rail but most importers would rather use roads, Ondego said.
He said the line had had no meaningful investment in the last 20-30 years and the infrastructure badly needed overhauling.
"The only issue that is holding disbursement at the moment is the resettlement action plan. Some of the lenders are insisting on a fairly elaborate resettlement action plan, which the government must commit to," he told Reuters.
Slum dwellers in parts of Nairobi, Mombasa and Kampala live too close to the line and have in the past ripped a section of the rail in times of political unrest in the Kenyan capital.
BRAZILIAN DEAL
Egypt's Citadel has emerged the dominant stakeholder in the venture with 51 percent via its subsidiary Ambience Ventures. Kenya's private equity firm TransCentury holds a 34 percent stake and Ugandan investors Bomi Holdings have the remainder.
RVRI signed a management and technical services agreement with Brazilian rail operator America Latina Logistica on Wednesday to help rehabilitate the network, Ondego said.
"We want to jumpstart the current system," he said. "So we will be borrowing a lot of technology from them, we will probably procure some from them and they will be providing up to seven people to join my management team."
The contract involves relaying different sections of about 70 km (44 miles) of rail between Mombasa and Nairobi.
The line linking the port city of Mombasa with Kampala and extends further west towards the area where Uganda has found commercial oil reserves.
"The rails arrive in eight months, and it will take another three months to put them down, that way we will eliminate another derailment," Ondego.
Ondego said funds to rebuild the railway line would come from the International Finance Corporation, Germany's KfW, the African Development Bank, Standard Chartered Bank's Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund, Dutch development bank FMO and Kenya's Equity Bank.
Thursday, 4th November, 2010
New Vision (Uganda)
RIFT Valley Railways Investments (RVR), the operator of the Kenya and Uganda railway lines, has signed a management and technical services agreement with América Latina LogÃstica (ALL).
Under the deal, LogÃstica, a leading Brazil-based rail group, will support RVR’s five-year rehabilitation and investment programme aimed at improving the safety and efficiency of rail operations across Kenya and Uganda, the firm said in a statement.
The first 24-month phase of the programme started this month, it added.
“LogÃstica are leading rail operators, who have proven their mettle in turnaround scenarios, including the much-studied privatisation of Brazil’s national railway,†Brown Ondego, the RVR executive chairman, said.
América Latina LogÃstica is the largest independent company of its kind in Latin America, where it operates railways and highways, serving clients across multiple countries.
Under the agreement, LogÃstica will provide RVR with key management and operational staff and oversee the transfer of its technologies.
“ALL will provide us proprietary technologies, including proven rail management software systems,†said Ondego.
He noted that the agreement was structured so that LogÃstica’s compensation is directly linked to specific operational and financial goals at RVR.
LogÃstica is the best emerging-markets rail operator, “and in bringing them to Kenya and Uganda, RVR is looking forward to a repeat of the successes it has accumulated in the past decade since Brazil privatised its rail sector.â€
Under the three-point rehabilitation programme, RVR will also replace worn-out rails in key areas.
According to the statement, the company is finalising its order for new rails with global suppliers.
The Brazilian firm will also kick-start a locomotive maintenance programme to improve reliability and enhance hauling capacity.
The third plank of the rehabilitation programme will see substantial investment in information technology systems throughout RVR, Ondego said.
LogÃstica has previously worked with RVR to develop the railway’s five-year investment and rehabilitation plan.
Rift Valley Railways Investment is the consortium charged with operating the national railways of Kenya and Uganda under a 21-year concession.
It is comprised of three main shareholders; Citadel Capital with a 51% stake, Transcentury 34% and Bomi Holdings 15%.
The consortium has pledged to invest $250m in the restructuring of the railway system.
Encroachment blocks loan for east Africa rail
By Helen Nyambura-Mwaura
Wed Nov 3, 2010 1:42pm GMT
NAIROBI (Reuters) - A company that runs railways in Kenya and Uganda has secured financing to rejuvenate the east African line but lenders will not disburse the cash until people living near the network are moved.
Rift Valley Railways Investments' (RVRI) Executive Director Brown Ondego said on Wednesday the rail needs $248 million to get it up and running in a minimum of 15 months.
The network suffers a derailment every other day, which costs the company between $1-1.5 million each month in delays and damages, the executive director said told Reuters.
It costs on average 20 percent less to send goods via rail but most importers would rather use roads, Ondego said.
He said the line had had no meaningful investment in the last 20-30 years and the infrastructure badly needed overhauling.
"The only issue that is holding disbursement at the moment is the resettlement action plan. Some of the lenders are insisting on a fairly elaborate resettlement action plan, which the government must commit to," he told Reuters.
Slum dwellers in parts of Nairobi, Mombasa and Kampala live too close to the line and have in the past ripped a section of the rail in times of political unrest in the Kenyan capital.
BRAZILIAN DEAL
Egypt's Citadel has emerged the dominant stakeholder in the venture with 51 percent via its subsidiary Ambience Ventures. Kenya's private equity firm TransCentury holds a 34 percent stake and Ugandan investors Bomi Holdings have the remainder.
RVRI signed a management and technical services agreement with Brazilian rail operator America Latina Logistica on Wednesday to help rehabilitate the network, Ondego said.
"We want to jumpstart the current system," he said. "So we will be borrowing a lot of technology from them, we will probably procure some from them and they will be providing up to seven people to join my management team."
The contract involves relaying different sections of about 70 km (44 miles) of rail between Mombasa and Nairobi.
The line linking the port city of Mombasa with Kampala and extends further west towards the area where Uganda has found commercial oil reserves.
"The rails arrive in eight months, and it will take another three months to put them down, that way we will eliminate another derailment," Ondego.
Ondego said funds to rebuild the railway line would come from the International Finance Corporation, Germany's KfW, the African Development Bank, Standard Chartered Bank's Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund, Dutch development bank FMO and Kenya's Equity Bank.