National Railways of Zimbabwe

Steam locomotives are still used in Zimbabwe; they have proven so popular with tourists that there are plans to refurbish several more steam locomotives.[4] However, funding is constrained, and diesel-hauled freight transport is a higher priority.[5]

The NRZ has also suffered from the general decline of the country's economy. Neglect of maintenance, lacking spare parts and overdue replacement of equipment have led to a situation were only part of the railway net is in good condition and equipment problems have led to reduced service. Steam locomotives have been reintroduced since 2004 as coal is in relatively good supply, while diesel must be imported and electricity shortages are common. Further, the company is seriously indebted, making it impossible to solve this situation without external help.[6] Goods transport has declined, from 18 million tonnes in 1998 to 2 million tonnes in 2010.[7]

More than 80 companies attended a compulsory pre-bid conference for the Framework to Recapitalise the National Railways of Zimbabwe held on 30 May 2017 in response to a Request for Proposals floated by the organisation in national, regional and international newspapers.

Fifty of the companies at the pre-bid conference held in Bulawayo were from Zimbabwe, 18 from South Africa and eight from China. The rest were from the United Kingdom, Malaysia, India, Belgium and Dubai.

The Government of Zimbabwe in April approved the Framework to Recapitalise the National Railways of Zimbabwe at a cost of more than US$400 million after the NRZ engaged chartered accountancy firm, Deloitte and Touche as its Transaction Advisor to assist in raising money to recapitalise its operations.

After the pre-bid conference, a voluntary due diligence inspection of NRZ assets was organised for interested investors from 6 to 9 June. Over 10 companies took up the offer and spent four days visiting NRZ facilities.

The potential investors visited NRZ installations in Bulawayo, Sawmills, Dete and Gweru to understand more about the organisation's operations before submitting their tender documents. Senior NRZ officials answered questions and queries from the potential investors.

The due diligence inspection started with a visit to the hub of NRZ maintenance work, the Bulawayo Mechanical Workshops, which boasts the largest factory space in Zimbabwe. This is where locomotives and wagons are repaired and refurbished.

The potential investors were also taken on a tour of the Central Mechanical Workshops, Mpopoma Diesel Running Maintenance depots and Mpopoma Repair Siding. Also visited were the Central Maintenance Vehicles Workshop, the Bridge and Structural Workshop and the Materials Yard. These facilities are in Bulawayo, the headquarters of the NRZ.

The investors were taken on a special train to Dete, with stops at Sawmills to see areas which they may be interested in investing in, including a re-railing (laying of new rail) project on a section of the north corridor rail and the Centralised Train Control System at Sawmills. They also assessed assets at Dabuka Marshalling Yards near Gweru where they inspected the track condition and the electrified section.

The tendering process closed on 4 July at 10 am. Six companies successfully submitted their bids to the State Procurement Board (SPB). The six companies are from China, Malaysia, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe. They are Sino Hydro, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, SMH Rail, Transnet Freight Rail, Diaspora Infrastructure Development Group (DGIG) which is a consortium between Transnet and Zimbabweans in South Africa, Crowe Horwath and Croyeaux Limited.

The next step is the adjudication process of the six bidders, where the best bidder as per the proposals will be selected and chosen for the project.

The recapitalisation of the NRZ was initiated to restore the organisation's operational capacity and return it to profitability. The NRZ system, at one time, had the capacity to carry over 18 million tonnes of freight annually but a general decline in the economy and the organisation's reduced operational capacity have seen freight volumes fall to 12.4 million tonnes in 1998 and 2.7 million tonnes in 2016.

The NRZ has a fleet of 168 locomotives, with 60 locos in service and more than 7,000 wagons of which 3,512 are in use.

The recapitalisation project will involve the rehabilitation and renewal of plant, equipment, rolling stock, track, signalling and telecommunication infrastructure and the supporting information technology systems.