Dapilon-Santou Railway in Guinea

On June 16, 2021, the Dapilon-Santou Railway, an access railroad between the Port of Dapilon and Santou mining zone in Guinea, undertaken by China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC), was officially completed and opened to traffic. 

Photo shows the opening ceremony of the Dapilon-Santo Railway was held at the Port of Dapilon on June 16, 2021. 

At the opening ceremony held at the Port of Dapilon, Guinean President Alpha Conde praised the construction efficiency of the Dapilon-Santou Railway and expected it to further promote the development of mineral projects along the railway route.

According to Sun Xiushun, general director of SMB Winning Consortium, the railway investor, Dapilon-Santou Railway is the first modern railway built in Guinea since the 1970s. When it is completed and put into operation, it will help strengthen Guinea's dominant position in the global bauxite market. The railway will also be used to transport other industrial and agricultural products in the future.

Abdoulaye Magassouba, the Guinean Minister of Mines and Geology, and Wang Baozhong, commercial counselor of Chinese Embassy in Guinea, and other officials attended the opening ceremony.

Reportedly, the construction of the Dapilon-Santou Railway commenced in March 2019, with a total length of about 125 kilometers and the design speech of 80 kilometers per hour. The railway was designed by China Railway First Survey and Design Institute Group Co., Ltd. and co-constructed by China Railway 14th Bureau Group Corporation Limited and other construction units by Chinese technologies and Chinese equipment according to Chinese standards.