The phosphate ore yard at Annaba Port is filled with dust as soon as the wind blows, and the loading machines are waiting for the materials. More than 400 kilometers south, the Tebessa mine is still mining, and many ores are currently being transported by truck to the seaside, which is time-consuming and expensive.

A line connects five provinces

On November 5, 2026, the Algerian National Railway Investment Authority announced the temporary award results for the system engineering of the Eastern Mining Railway Project. This bidding is divided into two sections, with CRCC consortium and CCECC consortium each winning one. Section 5.1 is the railway signal, communication, and energy system engineering project, led by China Railway Construction Corporation, with consortium members including China Railway Construction Corporation, CRCC Electrification Bureau Group Co., Ltd., and CRCC Algeria subsidiary. The construction period is 18 months. Section 5.2 is the railway overhead contact system and electrification project, led by CCECC, with members including CCECC and Algerian RAIL ELECTR, and a construction period of 20 months. The project is located on the eastern mining railway with a total length of about 422 kilometers, involving the main line of the Annaba to Jebel Onk railway, as well as the branch line connecting the Bled Hadba phosphate mine. The line covers five provinces: Annaba, El Tarif, Sukhakalas, Guelma, and Tebessa. The main content includes signaling, communication, energy supply, as well as contact network and electrification facilities. This result is a temporary award, and relevant objection procedures still need to be followed in the future. Keywords: Mining, Railway, Railway Electrification

Temporary labels are also hard work

The Eastern Mining Railway is an important supporting infrastructure for the comprehensive phosphate mining development project in Algeria. It connects the phosphate resources in the Tebessa region on one end and the Annaba Port on the Mediterranean coast on the other end, with a branch line serving the Blad Hadba mining area. After the project is completed, it will provide railway transportation support for phosphate mining, processing, and product export. After the stable transportation capacity of railways is formed, the transportation costs of phosphate ore, fertilizers, and related industrial products are expected to decrease. The railway history of Chinese enterprises in Algeria is also increasing. The 950 kilometer long Western Railway Mining Line was opened in February this year, with CRCC undertaking 575 kilometers of it. In August, communication, signal, and power system projects were launched, making it Africa's first desert heavy-duty railway. A team familiar with the route takes over the system, and the cost of adaptation is lower. To turn a mineral vein into an export capability, what is often lacking is not the railway tracks, but the invisible systems that make the tracks run.Editor/Min Jing