Henan TC Railway Explores Southern African Rail Market: Visits South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe

Introduction

Our team discussed project requirements on-site with the procurement lead of BBR, Zimbabwe’s largest private railway operator

In July 2026, our Henan TC Railway team travelled to Africa on a business visit to three countries: South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Leveraging the platform of Africa Rail 2026 in South Africa, our team held in-depth meetings with local railway authorities, state-owned railway administrations and leading private railway enterprises. In addition, our team met representatives of Chinese state-owned enterprises based in the region, including Sichuan Railway International, CSCEC South Africa, China Railway No.9 Bureau (Zimbabwe technical & commercial representatives). We showcased our full range of railway components and one-stop track solutions to precisely meet demands of Africa’s rail transit market, laying a firm foundation for us to expand further into Africa.

1. Participate in Africa Rail in Johannesburg, South Africa

From 7 to 8 July, our team exhibited at Africa Rail 2026, the International Railway Exhibition in Johannesburg, South Africa. During the exhibition, we highlighted our core products, including Rail fasteners: rail clips, rail fish plate; Railway turnouts and parts: rail base plates, slide plates, We also supply rail grinding vehicle, rail grinding train and rail milling trains. 

With our reliable product quality, competitive pricing, and customized solutions tailored to local conditions in Africa, our products and technical solutions won recognition from many trade visitors at the exhibition. And we had in-depth exchanges with buyers and engineering service providers from numerous nations, tailoring our offerings to satisfy their railway O&M, track upgrades and new infrastructure project needs. And we built up a substantial database of targeted clients.

2. Paid a visit to Namibia Railways

From July 9 to 11, our team paid a visit to TransNamib, where we held in-depth discussions on daily O&M of local railways, track defect remediation and other related challenges. And we focused on introducing our intelligent compact rail grinder to address these challenges. It features lightweight design, simple operation, and cost-effectiveness, making it perfectly suited to local requirements. Both parties reached a preliminary agreement on this product and will continue to push forward project implementation.

Our team met with TRANSNAMI, Namibia’s national railway operator

3. Our team paid a visit to NRZ

From July 12 to 23, our team visited Zimbabwe to conduct business exchanges, meeting successively with representatives from the Ministry of Transport of Zimbabwe, National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ), and local private railway operator BBR. Meanwhile, we also coordinated outreach to key railway organizations and leading companies, including the South African Railway Alliance (SARA) and South Africa’s Lenning Rail. This helps foster a multi-level, comprehensive cooperation network covering the African market. 

Our team presented our products to the CEO and engineering team of NRZ (National Railways of Zimbabwe)

In addition to showcasing our core proprietary products, we have rolled out customized solutions that address key industry pain points: discrepancies between Chinese and African railway standards and project funding constraints. And we have innovatively rolled out two partnership models: locomotive refurbishment buyout and leasing, helping customers lower their upfront investment thresholds. 

Meanwhile, we can provide full technical training, on-site engineer assignment, remote technical support, etc. Following negotiations, both parties reached consensus on multiple areas of cooperation, including bulk procurement of railway fasteners, the joint development of localized production lines, locomotive refurbishment for older units and long-term railway O&M services.

In conclusion 

Our team took a group photo with senior management of SARA (Southern African Railways Association)

Through this field visit, we’ve gained comprehensive insights into the current railway infrastructure landscape, O&M challenges, market demands and prevailing industry standards in Southern Africa. We will take advantage of our mature railway components industrial chain. Combined with local operating conditions and standards across Africa, we offer African customers with professional, efficient and one-stop rail transit supporting solutions. 

We will adhere to our overseas development strategy of “Going Global, Deep Local Engagement & Localization”. We will continuously expand our footprint in overseas markets including South America, Africa, Southeast Asia and Central Asia to advance the development of global rail transit infrastructure. We sincerely invite clients from all over the world to establish cooperative relations with us. 

Our team presented our products to Lenning Rail, a major enterprise based in Johannesburg, South Africa