Algeria has begun initial operational tests on the 950-kilometre Béchar–Tindouf–Gara Djebilet mining railway in western Algeria developed to support Gara Djebilet iron ore mining project, according to a statement posted by the National Agency for Studies and Monitoring the Accomplishment of Railway Investments (ANESRIF).

The mining railway is a central component of Algeria’s strategy to unlock the Gara Djebilet iron ore deposits, among the largest in the world at 3.5 billion tonnes, located in Tindouf province near the Mauritanian border.

The line, built by China Rail Construction Corporation (CRCC) in partnership with local companies - Cosider Travaux Publics, EPTP Alger, SEROR Est, ENGOA, Infrarail, SNTP, GCB, Infrafer, and SAPTA - is expected to be officially inaugurated in the coming days by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, according to a report by Algerian media outlet Echoroukonline.

The report said the first primary iron ore processing unit at Gara Djebilet, designed to produce around 4 million tonnes per year, is on track to be operationalised by the end of April 2026.

The project will also support the government’s plan to establish new iron ore processing plants in Tindouf, Béchar, and Naama.

Read more: Algeria’s Sonarem, China’s MCC discuss phosphorus reduction in Gara Djebilet iron ore

(Writing by Majda Muhsen; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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