Chinese state-run China Railway Construction Corp Ltd. (CRCC) signed an official construction agreement with the Nigerian government last Thursday for an $11.97 billion rail line that will run the length of Nigeria’s coast. It is China’s largest overseas contracting project to date.
The line will be 871 miles long with 22 stops between the cities of Lagos and Calabar, running at a top speed of 75 miles per hour. The line will feature Chinese technological standards, including construction machinery, trains, and steel products. According to CRCC Chairman Meng Fengchao, the project will create 200,000 construction jobs, and will lead to 30,000 permanent positions upon completion, Xinhua reports.
According to Business Insider, the cost of the project is close to the total trade exchanged between the two countries during 2013, which was $13.6 billion. The announcement for the Nigerian rail line came two weeks following the cancellation of a contract between China and Mexico for a high-speed railway.
