“We hold a positive view of Ghana’s railway construction over the next decade as the government moves forward with plans to develop the country’s moribund rail sector.”
In its analysis of ‘Ghana Railway Plans Gathering Steam’, the ratings agency said “Ghana’s railway development will see substantial progress over coming years, with a number of recent announcements highlighting the momentum in the sector.
Fitch said momentum in the railway sector will be a key driver of construction growth in Ghana, although it cautions that some of the more ambitious plans are unlikely to be implemented during the long-term forecast period.
That said, “We do not expect the government’s railway plans to be completed in full. In particular, while there is a strong business case for rehabilitation of existing lines, construction of new standard gauge railways is likely to run into obstacles including land acquisition issues, environmental concerns, and questions over viability.”
Fitch emphasised that it had previously highlighted that the upgrade of the railway line from Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso to the port of Abidjan in Cote d’Ivoire somewhat undermines the business case for construction of another line from the Burkinabe capital to Ghana’s Tema port. Consequently, it expect the fastest progress to be made on rehabilitation of the existing network, while the new standard gauge railways will be slower to progress, with a higher risk of project suspension or cancellation.
Agreement signed for the Railway Master Plan
• April 2019 – A consortium was chosen for the US$1.8 billion rehabilitation of the existing Eastern Railway from Accra to Kumasi. The consortium comprises a mixture of local and international contractors, including Ghana’s Keteke Group, Germany’s Arisu, Ralf Blankenbach and Havelländische Eisenbahn, Austria’s Voestalpine, France’s Ipimed and Italy’s Salcef.
• May 2019 – Four bidders submitted requests for qualification for the new standard gauge Eastern Railway line. The consortiums were China Railway Construction Consortium, African Global Development, Frontline Consortium, and China Railway Number 10 Consortium.
• May 2019 – China Railway Wuju Group Corporation (CRWG) signed a US$500 million deal for rehabilitation of a 100km section of the existing Western Railway, from Manso, just north of Takoradi, to Dunkwa.
• May 2019 – The Ghanaian government approved US$230mn of funding to purchase new rolling stock for the railways.
The Railway Master Plan, published in 2013 envisaged the revival of Ghana’s railway network, with only short sections operational including from the port of Tema and Accra to the suburb of Kotoku, and from the port of Takoradi to Dunkwa and surrounding mining areas.
It sets out six stages for development, starting with rehabilitation of the existing narrow gauge network (Western and Eastern lines). This is followed by the addition of new standard gauge lines in five further phases, including a new line from Kumasi to Paga on the border with Burkina Faso, a new coastal line connecting to Togo and Cote d’Ivoire, and new eastern and western lines.
(Selorm) | 
(Nana Kwesi)