RITES Limited has opened a branch office in South Africa, adding a local business-development presence as the Indian transport engineering company expands its locomotive export and conversion work across African Cape Gauge markets.
The company notified the Indian stock exchanges on 28 August 2026 that it had established the branch in the Republic of South Africa in the form of an external company. RITES said the office had been established to support its business-development activities in the country.
The move comes as RITES develops several locomotive transactions in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent. On 6 July 2026, the company disclosed that Volantis Asset Finance (Pty) Ltd had accepted its offer for the supply and commissioning of 4,000hp Cape Gauge diesel-electric locomotives. The offer was valued at US$35.82 million, with an indicated execution period of 20 months.
During RITES' Q1 FY2026-27 results conference call on 5 August, Chairman and Managing Director Rahul Mithal identified the South African transaction as covering nine locomotives. He also confirmed that it had not yet been included in the company's order book because RITES was awaiting signature of the formal agreement.
RITES' African locomotive activity extends beyond the Volantis transaction. In Mozambique, the company has been executing a ten-locomotive order, of which four locomotives had been shipped by the time of its February 2026 results conference call. Management also referred to a separate, more recent order for five locomotives for Mozambique.
A further programme involves in-service Indian diesel-electric locomotives being converted from 1,676mm broad gauge for operation on 1,067mm Cape Gauge networks in Africa.
During the February results call, RITES said orders involving Ntokoto Rail Holdings, African Rail Company and Talis Logistics formed part of a series of orders for converted in-service locomotives. The first two locomotives were then under production and were intended to undergo proving trials and obtain the required approvals after shipment before further locomotives were produced and dispatched.
Separately, Botswana Railways announced in August 2026 that it had established a partnership with Ntokoto Holdings through a Special Purpose Vehicle to provide additional logistics capacity for Morupule Coal Mine. Botswana Railways said the arrangement would allow it to augment its existing capacity using private-sector capabilities as it seeks to increase rail's share of the mine's freight.
In a separate fleet update, Botswana Railways said it had returned four locomotives to service following the receipt of critical spares, including traction motors and interface modules.
