• South Africa chose eleven private freight rail operators from twenty-five applicants to break Transnet's monopoly.
• New entrants may add twenty million tonnes yearly and attract one hundred billion rand of private investment within ten years.
• First private trains are expected in the second half of 2026 after final contracts and safety certificates are secured.

South Africa picked 11 private train operators to run on its state-owned freight network, moving the continent’s most-industrialised economy a step closer to breaking a three-decade rail monopoly that has throttled mineral exports and driven trucks onto crumbling highways. Transport Minister Barbara Creecy said in a briefing on Friday that the companies—selected from 25 applicants—have cleared safety, technical, and financial tests set by Transnet Freight Rail and will now enter negotiations lasting three to six months for network-access contracts. The first private locomotives are expected to haul coal, iron ore, and containers by the second half of 2026, with most operators targeting 2027–2028.

The decision implements a 2022 policy that keeps tracks and signals in state hands while allowing third-party operators, similar to open-access regimes in Europe and North America. It is the most significant liberalisation since freight rail was centralised under Transnet in 1990, and comes as the utility struggles with cable theft, locomotive shortages and a R130 billion debt pile. The 11 operators will bid for 41 routes across six corridors that link inland mines to ports in Durban, Richards Bay and Saldanha Bay. Government officials estimate the newcomers could add 20 million tonnes of annual capacity—roughly 11% of current volumes—and unlock as much as R100 billion in private investment in wagons, locomotives and sidings over the next decade.

Transnet, which will charge fees for track access and maintenance, is separately seeking R34 billion from National Treasury for urgent repairs to signalling, ballast and overhead power lines. A first tranche of R16.4 billion has already been submitted for approval; the balance will be requested in October. Creecy declined to name the shortlisted firms until contracts are finalised, citing commercial sensitivities. Logistics group Grindrod confirmed it is among the 11, while industry executives say the list includes coal exporters, chrome producers and a container consortium backed by global shipping lines.

South Africa’s rail network carries about 170 million tonnes of freight a year, down from a peak of 226 million tonnes in 2017. Chronic under-investment, labour strikes and sabotage have pushed miners to shift cargo to trucks, clogging the N3 highway between Johannesburg and Durban and increasing logistics costs to an estimated 14% of GDP—more than double the global average. The reform plan still faces hurdles. Operators must obtain safety certificates from the Railway Safety Regulator, secure rolling-stock leases from financiers bruised by Transnet’s payment delays, and lock in berths at congested ports. Analysts at Rand Merchant Bank warn that failure to synchronise rail liberalisation with port expansion could leave new trains stranded inland.

For President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has made infrastructure turnaround a centrepiece of his investment drive, the rail opening offers a rare success story ahead of local elections in October. Ratings agencies have flagged faster mineral exports and lower logistics costs as prerequisites for any upgrade to South Africa’s sub-investment-grade credit rating. The government says it will monitor network performance quarterly and could expand access to passenger services if the freight pilot proves viable. For now, executives at the chosen companies are poring over track-capacity spreadsheets and locomotive leases, racing to turn conditional letters of award into the first private trains the country has seen in a generation.

Idriss Linge