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China-Africa relations
ChinaDiplomacy

How North African railway is on track to helping China de-risk its iron ore supply

  • Algeria’s Gara Djebilet iron ore mine has reserves of 3.5 billion tonnes that could help China de-risk its supplies of the steel raw material
  • Chinese state-owned CRCC is helping to build a vital railway to connect the mine to the Algerian national rail network

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China and Algeria are working together for easier access to a large iron ore deposit in the north African country. Photo: Shutterstock
Jevans Nyabiage

In the middle of the Sahara Desert, Chinese workers have been braving the intense Algerian heat as they build a 575km (357-mile) rail line connecting one of the world’s largest iron ore mines to the national rail network.

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Workers of the state-owned China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) have begun digging the rocky, dusty route between the Gara Djebilet iron ore mine in Algeria’s southwest province of Tindouf and Bechar at its border with Morocco, in preparation for laying track.
It is tough work, but a task that could ultimately help China de-risk its iron ore supply, while helping the North African country at the same time.
China currently depends largely on Australia and Brazil for its iron ore, the primary raw material for making steel. Beijing is hoping supply from the Gara Djebilet mine, which has reserves of around 3.5 billion tonnes, will help diversify its sources.

Meanwhile, Algiers is banking on the ore to help reduce its dependence on its oil and gas industries for export revenues.

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CRCC will work with Algerian state-owned civil engineering company Cosider Travaux Publics to deliver the railroad, which will connect the remote parts of the mineral-rich western region of Gara Djebilet Iron Mine Zone with the Dumiat Industrial Zone in the Bechar region, with a total of 40 stations along the way. In doing so, it will facilitate the development of Algerian iron ore mining and provide a much-needed boost to the economy.

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