Afghan railroads, past, present and future
NATO TV visits Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of the northern province of Balkh, seven months after the first round of transition. Since July, Afghan forces have been fully in charge of Mazar’s security, with ISAF forces only operating in a supporting role. We talk to local people and the police chief for an update on the security situation.
Includes brief TEM2 action at 0:12.
“NATO in Afghanistan – The Train Through Hairatan” is a NATO video showing freight trains running on the Hairatan to Mazar-i-Sharif railway line.
The Minister of Mines Wahidullah Shahrani has said Chinese copper mining concessionaire MCC should award contracts for surveying railway lines from Kabul to Torkham (on the Khyber Pass border with Pakistan), and from Kabul to Kabul to Ghorband, Bamiyan and Naibabad (for Mazar-i-Sharif and Hayratan).
I think “China Railway(s) Company” is China Railway Group, who undertook work on the Kabul – Jalalabad road.1 However there are a number of Chinese organisations with similar names which can be hard to untangle.
Technical research for Kabul-Mazir and Kabul-Torkham railways begins soon
According to Aynak Copper Project contract, MCC are required to extend the railways sub projects for transportation of copper. Accordingly a meeting took place between the relevant organizations at the Ministry of Mines to discuss the coordination and regular implementation, and, identifying routes for the railway tracks.
The Minister of Mines Wahidullah Shahrani said at the meeting that the preliminary track – from Kabul to Torkham and from Kabul to Mazarisharif via Ghorband, Bamyan and Naybabad to Hairatan – of the railway was determined last year. Now it is necessary for MCC to sign a contract with a company for technical survey though a bidding process.
“The China Railway Company which is familiar with the territory of Afghanistan and have experience in constructing the Polikhomri-Shikhanbander and Kabul-Jalalabad roads, has been identified as being the winning company of the tender, and will begin the technical research for Kabul-Mazar and Kabul-Torkham railways” Said Mr. Shahrani
Mr. Shahrani believed that the creation of railways in Afghanistan is a complex undertaking and therefore there is need for an independent railways organization inside the government.
He stressed that the creations of most of railways are related to mining projects therefore for the time being all of railways projects will be related to the Ministry of Mines.
“These railways will not be limited to transportation of minerals, but will be used in different sectors like trading goods etc.” He said.
The exact expenditures of the project will be estimated after the technical research implemented by the China Railways Company.
Source: Ministry of Mines, dated 2011-10-17, published 2011-10-18
The Afghan government’s financial contribution to the Hayratan to Mazar-i-Sharif railway project was approved by a session of the Wolesi Jirga, the lower house of parliament, on 15 October 2011.
Wolesi Jirga approves paying of 51 million US$ to the central bank and 20 million US$, because of a railway construction from Hiratan to Mezari Sharif
Wolesi Jirga held session. The plenary session of the Wolesi Jirga was chaired by Abdul Raouf Ibraheemi the president of Wolesi Jirga. At the session, the MPs debated about paying of 51 Million US$ to the central bank and 20 Million US$ because of a railway construction from Hiratan to Mezari Sharif.
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In conclusion, they approved paying of ‘51 Million US$ to the central bank and 20 Million US$ because of a railway construction from Hiratan to Mezari Sharif’ by the majority of all the members.
Source: Parliament of Afghanistan, Kabul, 2011-10-15
When the Asian Development Bank agreed to fund the Mazar-i-Sharif project in 2009 it said it would meet USD165m of the USD170m cost, leaving USD5m to come from the Afghan government. The Afghan parliament has now agreed to provide USD20m, so an extra USD15m has appeared somewhere.
A Kyodo News photo showing police officers patrolling railway track in the suburbs of Mazar-i-Sharif in July 2011.
Hairatan-to-Mazar-i-Sharif railway opens
TASHKENT – Service began last weekend on the long-awaited Hairatan-to-Mazar-i-Sharif railway.
Uzbekistan Railways (UTY) built the route, which was scheduled to open in July before contingencies forced a postponement.
“We have been working out the route’s status as well as who will run it and how (since early July),” said Rasul Holikov of UTY.
Uzbekistan and Afghanistan signed a three-year contract August 4 under which Uzbekistan will provide commercial services and operate the 75km railway. For now, the tracks carry only freight. Technical problems, such as reinforcement of sections of the trackbed and security on the Afghan portion, have also been addressed, Holikov said.
Original plans called for both countries to operate the railway, but a lack of Afghan equipment required UTY to take over full operation.
“We hope that while our company is operating the railway, Afghanistan will be able to train its personnel, acquire the necessary rail equipment and take over the route … for its own use,” Holikov said.
Afghanistan conceded a current lack of workers and equipment.
“We also do not have enough rolling stock – locomotives, which cost approximately $300,000 each, and freight cars – to ensure uninterrupted freight transport,” said Walid Obaidi, an Afghan locomotive engineer from Mazar-i-Sharif. “It is better in this case to rely on a company with considerable material resources and a good reputation in the rail sector.”
But Afghanistan must increase its efforts to develop rail transport for economic reasons, said Mohammad Daud of the Moscow Centre for the Study of Modern Afghanistan.
“The Afghan market is attractive to all of Central Asia’s countries. For example, Uzbekistan exports electricity and clothing and provides transport services,” said Daud. Now, freight deliveries can be conducted routinely, he said.
“The railway has unquestionably stimulated development of the entire northern region,” said political analyst Valerii Han. “New jobs were created, and local enterprises started operating. The railway will affect the development of agriculture, industry and mining … in these regions. In the future … it will help the Central Asian countries access the sea … (at) the Karachi seaport.”
Uzbek and Afghan security agencies are working together to ensure the lines are safe. The railway’s security will be further strengthened in the future, UTY said.
“We plan to amend the Law on Railways to further ensure the security of rail transport, prevent possible emergencies and eliminate threats to people’s lives,” said Damir Siddikov, an Uzbek senator. “We will be introducing the National Railway Transport Safety System.”
“I drove a locomotive through all of the stations up to Mazar-i-Sharif,” said Umid Hursandov, a UTY engineer. “Like all other the new railways built by our company, (it) is reliable and meets all standards. Many railway workers in our country are worried about their safety if they work this route. Of course, it would be foolish not to recognise that tension in the region persists, but I saw sound security along the entire railway and soldiers were guarding every crossing and important railway yard.”
Source: Hairatan-to-Mazar-i-Sharif railway opens, Maksim Yeniseyev, CentralAsiaOnline.com, 2011-08-23
The photo captioned “An Uzbekistan Railways train departs from Hairatan, Uzbekistan, to Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, August 21” appears to show a VL80 electric locomotive. UTY operates the type, however the Afghan line is not electrified.
Opening of the Hayratan to Mazar-i-Sharif line had been planned for July, but has been delayed “indefinitely”, Central Asia Online reported on 28 July 2011.
The delay is blamed on “legal and technical issues” including “the incompatibility of the railway’s track width with that of Afghan railways” – which seems a little odd – and the lack of Afghan locomotives, rolling stock and trained workers. There have also been problems with unstable ground.
More at “Afghan railway launch delayed” by Maksim Yeniseyev at Central Asia Online.
A Ministry of Mines statement on the 4 July 2011 conference in Paris.
Conference on Afghan Railways development held in Paris
A comprehensive plan for building railways in Afghanistan based on economic criteria was welcomed at a special conference in Paris.
The Conference, organized by the Afghan and French governments, was attended by representative of the G8 group, international organizations such as the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, European Union, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, India.
The inaugural speech of French Minister of Transport Thierry Mariani, was followed by His Excellency Wahidullah Shahrani, the Afghan Minister of Mines, who presented the plan, designed to facilitate transport of goods between South Asia and Central Asia and revive the historic role of Afghanistan as the transport hub of the region.
Mr. Shahrani clarified National and Regional Resource Corridors Program drafted by the Ministries of Mines, Transport and Civil Aviation, and Public Works. The Program was warmly received by the French Minister of Transport and the participants.
Representative of G8 and international organizations expressed their willingness to consider giving financial and technical support to the proposals for the Mazar-i-sharif-Andkhoi, Kandahar-Chaman, Kabul-Torkham and Kabul-Mazar-i-sharif railways projects financially and technically, and emphasized the need for a clear organizational structure and railway management regime.
Railways are vital for Afghanistan’s development and the exploitation of Afghan mineral resources. Accordingly the comprehensive railway plan has emerged from coordination by the Ministry of Mines with other relevant organizations.
Mr Shahrani, in his dual role as the Minister of Mines and Head of the Infrastructure Cluster, was accompanied by Engineer Abdul Quddus Hamidi the Minister of Public Works, Dr. Daud Ali Najafi Acting Minister for Transport and Civil Aviation, and Mustafa Mastoor Deputy Minister of Finance.
Source: Ministry of Mines, 2011-07-09
A photo from the Ministry of Public Works website showing an official visit to the Hayratan to Mazar-i-Sharif railway project, dated 1 August 2010, plus a view of some track dated 30 September 2010.
“The visit of minister of public works to the project of railways Heyratan-Mazar sharif”
The new railway from Hayratan to Mazar-i-Sharif will open shortly, reports Central Asia Online.
Although ready to operate, the railway has been idle since February because Afghanistan failed to complete some legal formalities and because some security concerns existed.
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“We helped build the latter line, and it’s up to Afghanistan now to make it operational. Professional railway personnel need to be trained, and locomotives and cars purchased,” [UTY spokesman Rasul Khalikov] said.The Afghan side plans to start running its own trains by year’s end, he added.
[…]Source: Uzbek-Afghan railway to start running in July, Maksim Yeniseyev, CentralAsiaOnline.com, 2011-06-29
