Belt and Road projects: Past, present, future

Updated: Apr 22, 2019 chinadaily.com.cn Print

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Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway

A photo taken on Jan 1, 2018 shows a train at the Lebu station in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia. The Chinese-built 756-kilometer electrified rail project connecting landlocked Ethiopia to Djibouti officially started commercial operations on Jan 1, 2018. [Photo/Xinhua]

The Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway, the first electrified railway in East Africa with built on Chinese standards and with Chinese equipment, officially commenced commercial operations in January 2018.

With a length of 751.7 kilometers, a design speed of 120 kilometers per hour, 45 stations and total investment of about $4 billion, the railway was jointly constructed by China Railway Group Ltd and China Railway Construction Corp Ltd and is the first with a full industrial chain Chinese enterprises have built overseas.

The railway reduces travel time from the Djibouti port to Addis Ababa to less than 12 hours from the previous three days.