Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR), the concessionaire of the Lobito Corridor, was named Railway Operator of the Year at the second edition of the Angola Hub Transportes e Logística Summit (AHTLS 2026) — recognition that comes in a year the company broke its monthly freight record.
The award was presented on Wednesday, 30 September, during the closing ceremony of the AHTLS 2026 at the Talatona Convention Centre in Luanda, organised by the Ministry of Transport. The summit ran from 28 to 30 September, with the Lobito Corridor as one of its central themes.
The prize was accepted by LAR’s commercial director, Artur Silva, who dedicated the honour to the company’s workforce. “This recognition belongs to our teams, who work every day to ensure a safe, reliable and efficient rail operation along the Lobito Corridor,” he said.
According to the company, the award acknowledges its performance as a rail operator and its contribution to connecting Angola’s interior to the Port of Lobito, moving freight and integrating Angola into regional logistics chains. LAR was also active in the summit’s panel discussions: Ottoniel Manuel, a member of the Board of Directors, moderated the session dedicated to Africa’s strategic corridors. In total, this edition of the summit presented 25 prizes to companies, institutions, projects and individuals across the transport and logistics sectors.
The accolade comes at a moment of strong growth for the operator. In July, LAR moved 27,000 tonnes of international freight — the best month in its history. For the full year 2026, the company expects to transport around 400,000 tonnes, roughly half of which will be copper and cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) bound for Lobito, with a similar volume moving in the opposite direction. The target is to double that volume in 2027.
According to the concessionaire, this operational performance is underpinned by an ongoing investment programme covering the rehabilitation of the rail line and supporting infrastructure, as well as the acquisition of new rolling stock and equipment.
LAR is a joint venture owned by commodity trader Trafigura and Portuguese construction group Mota-Engil, with Belgian rail specialist Vecturis — responsible for day-to-day railway operations — holding a minority stake. The consortium operates under a 30-year concession awarded by the Angolan government in 2022.
The concession covers the operation and maintenance of the 1,289-kilometre Benguela Railway between Lobito and Luau, at the border with the DRC, plus an additional 450 kilometres of track in Congolese territory stretching to Kolwezi. In December 2025, LAR closed a US$753 million financing package expected to increase the corridor’s transport capacity tenfold — to 4.6 million tonnes per year — and cut the cost of shipping critical minerals by approximately 30%.
The AHTLS 2026, organised by the Ministry of Transport, was held between 28 and 30 September at the Talatona Convention Centre and positioned the Lobito Corridor as a centrepiece of Angola’s ambition to become a regional logistics hub.
Source: Mercado / Original article: https://mercado.co.ao/lobito-atlantic-railway-eleita-operador-ferroviario-do-ano/
