Lobito Atlantic Railway Resumes Freight Traffic on the Lobito Corridor With First Copper Train From the DRC
Why it Matters
The return of international copper traffic from the DRC confirms the operational recovery of the Lobito–Huambo section after severe flooding disrupted the railway in April 2026. For a corridor positioned around cross-border freight, mining logistics and regional trade, the restoration of safe operations is an important step in re-establishing service continuity.
LAR’s use of the Dango Multimodal Platform during the interruption also points to the growing importance of contingency planning across strategic rail corridors. As the recovery programme moves into engineering studies, the next focus is not only repair, but also long-term infrastructure resilience against more frequent extreme weather events.
Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR) has received the first international copper train from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) following the reopening of the railway section between Lobito and Huambo. Its arrival marks the resumption of freight traffic along the Lobito Corridor.
Rail traffic on this section was interrupted for two months because of the severe floods that affected Benguela Province in April 2026. Emergency rehabilitation works successfully restored the railway connection between Lobito and Huambo under safe operating conditions.
Throughout the interruption, freight and passenger services between Huambo and Luau remained fully operational across more than 1,000 kilometres of railway infrastructure.
“The arrival of this first international train from the DRC demonstrates the resilience of our operations and the extraordinary commitment of our teams. In just a few weeks, we recovered critical infrastructure and restored the railway connection, reaffirming the strategic importance of the Lobito Corridor for Angola and the wider region,” said Nicholas Fournier, CEO of Lobito Atlantic Railway.
During the interruption, LAR maintained cargo flows through a multimodal contingency solution operated from the Dango Multimodal Platform, ensuring the continuity of domestic and international logistics operations.
The recovery programme is now entering a second phase, including engineering studies aimed at identifying measures to further strengthen the resilience of the railway infrastructure against future extreme weather events.
The resumption of freight traffic from the DRC reinforces the role of the Lobito Corridor as a strategic gateway for regional trade and for connecting Angola with markets across the interior of Southern Africa.
