A Chinese and local joint venture won the $1.1 billion contract for a 230-kilometre railway from Ghardaia to El-Meniaa. The route is designed to expand passenger links and freight capacity in southern Algeria.
The line is planned to start at Metlili station and run south to El-Meniaa. Algeria's state rail developer awarded the $1.1 billion contract to a Chinese and local joint venture, MEED reported.
The 230-kilometre contract covers civil works and track infrastructure. It also includes railway systems and rolling stock. The consortium will handle an initial period of operations and maintenance.
The route forms part of a broader southern rail expansion. Plans link Laghouat with El-Meniaa, then extend the line through In Salah to Tamanrasset. The programme is intended to improve passenger and freight connections in Algeria's southern regions, supporting the movement of goods and mineral products. El Djanoub El Kabir has reported that the African Development Bank approved financing for the separate El-Meniaa-Tamanrasset section.
Construction will cross desert terrain and connect the new route with Algeria's existing northern passenger network.
On 4 October 2026, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune ordered the immediate launch of work on the southern rail sections. He set a target of completing the wider project by the end of 2028. At a government meeting on 9 October, officials reviewed preparations for construction bases and the mobilisation of material resources. The government named the railway sections a top priority for the public works sector, Radio Algérienne reported.
Elsewhere in Algeria's infrastructure sector, upstream assessments are examining options to improve recovery from discovered oil resources.
