Algeria Invests $1.5 Billion to Revamp Railway Network

Algerian railways will soon get a makeover, with the government planning investments of $1.5 billion toward modernization and expansion of the rail network. Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, TX) reports that the railway planning agency, L'Agence Nationale d'Etudes et de Suivi de la Realisation des Investissements Ferroviaires, announced that it will develop a 1,200-kilometer railway line that will connect the east and west of the country along the coast with the inlands. The single-track line will be built on normal gauge. Telecommunication and tenders for signaling systems will also be opened soon.

This project is part of the agency's bigger plan to establish railway connectivity in the high plateau region and redevelop the network across the rest of the country. The fertile high plateau region is located south of the Atlas Mountains and extends to the Sahara Desert. This region, which lies 1,000 meters above sea level, is sparsely inhabited and often referred to as the bread basket of Algeria. The government, now keen to develop this region, has initiated the construction of roads, industrial infrastructure, housing, public amenities and railways. In 2005, a consortium of Bernard Ingenieure ZT GmbH (Tirol, Austria) and Obermeyer Planen and Beraten GmbH (Munich, Germany) submitted a feasibility and design study report for the railway line in the high plateau region to the rail agency. Based on the study, the agency is inviting bids for four contracts to set up 630 kilometers of railway lines. The lines will connect Boughezoul to M'Sila, Relizane to Tissemsilt via Tiaret, Saida to Tiaret and Tissemsilt to Boughezoul.

The agency also plans to repair the electric system of its railway track across 300 kilometers in the western region of the country and has also identified eight pre-qualified bidding companies for this project. Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany), Ansaldo STS SpA (BIT:STS) (Genova, Italy), Alstom SA (EPA:ALO) (Levallois-Perret, France), Eliop (Madrid, Spain), Thales (Hauts De Seine, France), General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) (Fairfield, Connecticut) and Enyse SA (Madrid, Spain) are among the shortlisted bidders. These companies must submit final bids by December 28, 2008, and a decision on the contract will be taken by early 2009.

In early December, the agency also announced tenders for a feasibility study of the railway line and earthwork renovation across six route-based packages. A feasibility study has been started on some of the routes–the 46-kilometer line between Beni Mancour and Bejaia, the 68-kiliometer line from Algiers to Oran, the 52.5-kilometer line extending from Senia to Ain Temouchent and the 199-kilomter stretch from Oued Tlelet to Ghazaout through Akid Abbes. The line from El Gourzi to Biskra, totaling 148 kilometers, and the 11-kilometer Ramdane- Djamel Constantine line have been included as one package. A survey has begun on this package as well.

The agency is also evaluating bids for the electrification of the east-west railway line. Proposals from Balfour-Beatty plc (LSE:BBY) (London, United Kingdom), Cegelec (Brussels, Belgium) and a consortium of Spanish companies–Electren SA (Madrid, Spain), Cobra SA (Madrid), Sociedad Espanola De Montajes Industriales SA (Madrid) and Elecnor SA (Madrid)–are under consideration.

Algeria's metro railway was envisioned in the 1980s, but lack of funds delayed the scheme for several years, and the project was later deferred because of the civil war. In 2003, it was reinitiated and the first phase will start operations in 2009. The first phase is a nine-kilometer line that connects Hai El Badr and Tafourah Large Post Office. Ten stations are connected in this route. Entreprise de Metro d'Alger, the supervising agency for the metro rail project, will begin inviting tenders for the second phase of construction in 2009.

Algeria has a 4,000-kilometer railway network, most of which needs immediate renovation. With the redevelopment plan proposed by the government, the railway network in Algeria is finally receiving the attention it has long deserved.