#SPOORNET WAS expected to sign a contract this week to operate a new railway line to be built between Beit Bridge and Bulawayo (BBR).
In terms of this landmark agreement Spoornet will provide the locomotives and rolling stock in addition to manpower and expertise for a total operational control of this privatised railway. A considerable amount of South African investment went towards the cost of building the railway link, totalling US$70 million. Work on the line begins in January 1998.
This appointment must come as a surprise, particularly to National Railways of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwean national rail carrier. However, it does underscore a widespread belief in railway circles in both Zimbabwe and South Africa that a quiet nod by Pretoria has been given to a project considered hardly viable by other operators.
BY TERRY HUTSON
