The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has signed a $553 million loan agreement with the Lobito Atlantic Railway consortium to support the refurbishment and operation of the Benguela railway in Angola. The financing marks a significant step in the development of the Lobito Corridor, a transcontinental transport route that will link copper and cobalt mining regions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia to the Angolan port city of Lobito on the Atlantic Ocean.
The consortium, known as Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR), comprises Portugal’s Mota Engil, global commodities trading firm Trafigura, and Belgian rail operator Vecturis SA. In addition to the DFC funding, the Development Bank of Southern Africa will contribute $200 million to the initiative, bringing the total financing announced this week to over $750 million.
The DFC described the agreement as a demonstration of Washington’s commitment to advancing “strategic infrastructure that promotes regional trade, mutual economic growth, and long-term U.S.-Africa cooperation.” According to the development agency, the funds will also support upgrades to Lobito’s mineral port, with projections that transportation capacity will rise to 4.6 million metric tonnes annually. This expansion is expected to lower mineral transport costs by up to 30 per cent, facilitating more efficient trade across Southern and Central Africa.
The Benguela railway, originally constructed during the colonial period, stretches over 1,300 kilometres across Angola, linking the interior provinces to the coast. Its revitalisation is viewed not only as a logistical improvement but as part of a wider regional development framework that seeks to enable African economies to extract greater value from their own natural resources. LAR, which secured a 30-year concession for the operation of the line in 2022, has indicated that the loan will also be directed toward the acquisition of new rolling stock and the training of local railway personnel.
The broader Lobito Corridor initiative involves the construction of approximately 515 kilometres of new railway in Zambia and 315 kilometres in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The new lines will integrate with the Benguela network, creating a unified system that connects the mineral-rich Copperbelt region to global markets through the Atlantic seaboard. The Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), headquartered in Lagos, is serving as the lead developer for the corridor and recently concluded feasibility studies for the Zambian segment. It is currently soliciting bids from contractors, with additional financing agreements expected to be finalised by the end of 2026.
This development comes as several nations and institutions intensify efforts to strengthen Africa’s transport infrastructure. Earlier in 2025, the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation announced plans to invest $1.4 billion in the rehabilitation of the Tanzania-Zambia railway, which provides an alternative route for the export of minerals via Tanzanian ports. While international involvement in such projects has often been framed through a lens of competition between global powers, African financial and institutional actors have increasingly asserted leadership in defining project priorities and partnerships that align with regional development goals.
The Lobito Corridor, therefore, represents more than a strategic logistics route. It embodies a broader continental ambition to connect markets, stimulate intra-African trade, and enable African nations to negotiate from positions of greater agency in global supply chains. The project’s emphasis on local employment, skills transfer, and infrastructure sustainability underscores a shift toward development frameworks that are regionally grounded and globally connected.
