A new Chinese-funded 472km standard-gauge railway line is being built in Kenya, the first part of which will link Mombasa with Nairobi.[2] Kenya is on course to complete the construction works in the second half of 2017, “but it’s only a part of a much wider project that will eventually link Mombasa with other major East African cities such as Kampala in Uganda”[1].
“Now, the first section of the east African nation's $13.8 billion railway is nearly finished”[1]. “It is hoped that the track will shorten the journey between the two cities from 12 hours to four hours. Passenger trains will travel at 120km/h, and freight trains will be able to carry 25 million tons per year, according to the International Railway Journal”[1]. “The hope is that this new railway will reduce congestion on Kenya's crowded road network, and promote tourism”[1]. “Eventually, the East African Railway Masterplan will link Mombasa with other major east African cities such as Kampala, in Uganda, and Juba, in South Sudan”[1].
(Accessed and sources: http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/15/africa/kenya-railway-east-africa/)
“Financing for the new line is provided by the Exim Bank of China which agreed to support 90%, or $US 3.42bn, of the project’s costs. The overall loan consists of a $US 1.6bn concessional loan payable over 20 years and a commercial loan of $US 1.82bn payable over 15 years. Both loans have been guaranteed by Kenya’s National Treasury. Yet achieving sufficient traffic volumes on the standard-gauge line to meet the cost of operations and repayment of the loan at this stage is far from assured”[2].
“Financing for the new line is provided by the Exim Bank of China which agreed to support 90%, or $US 3.42bn, of the project’s costs. The overall loan consists of a $US 1.6bn concessional loan payable over 20 years and a commercial loan of $US 1.82bn payable over 15 years. Both loans have been guaranteed by Kenya’s National Treasury. Yet achieving sufficient traffic volumes on the standard-gauge line to meet the cost of operations and repayment of the loan at this stage is far from assured”[2].
“While the hope is that once operational the line will provide the foundation for further economic growth in Kenya and east Africa, the first phase of the project has already provided additional jobs. Maina says the project has provided nearly 19,000 local people with direct employment and about 6000 indirectly”[2]. “More than 250 local suppliers have been directly engaged with supplying materials and subcontracting services to the project,” he says.
“The extension crosses rugged terrain and is the most challenging of the project. It will require 28km of bridges and 8.5km of tunnels, including one which will be 5.3km long and 70m deep and is expected to take five years to drill. The route also has high embankments and the cuttings will require slope protection according to its design details. It will also span existing infrastructure such as roads and the metre-gauge line. This section will cost $US 1.5bn, or $US 12.5m per km compared with $US 8m per km for the 472km stretch between Mombasa and Nairobi”[2].
(Accessed and sources: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/04/160412-railway-kenya-parks-wildlife/)
“The park in southeastern Kenya was already traversed by an old, colonial-built rail line and a two-lane highway, both linking Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, to the coast at Mombasa. But the new railway, unlike the old one and the highway, is being built on a steep man-made embankment that elephants cannot cross. The railway has only a few bridges under which elephants and giraffes can pass, so in other places, they are forced to use underpasses constructed where the animals were believed to migrate”[3].
“The park in southeastern Kenya was already traversed by an old, colonial-built rail line and a two-lane highway, both linking Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, to the coast at Mombasa. But the new railway, unlike the old one and the highway, is being built on a steep man-made embankment that elephants cannot cross. The railway has only a few bridges under which elephants and giraffes can pass, so in other places, they are forced to use underpasses constructed where the animals were believed to migrate”[3].
(Accessed and sources: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/04/160412-railway-kenya-parks-wildlife/)
The official reason of why Chinese decided to pave the railroad through the National Park is because of cheaper land. But the real reason may be hidden from the eyes of ordinary people.
“After the visit by China’s president to Kenya in April 2006, the Kenya government allocated China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) exclusive rights, with no competitive bidding, to 6 out of the 11 available oil exploration blocks in the country. Current but outdated mining laws allow the government to do that. This opened 28 percent of total oil exploration area coverage in Kenya to CNOOC”[4].
“After the visit by China’s president to Kenya in April 2006, the Kenya government allocated China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) exclusive rights, with no competitive bidding, to 6 out of the 11 available oil exploration blocks in the country. Current but outdated mining laws allow the government to do that. This opened 28 percent of total oil exploration area coverage in Kenya to CNOOC”[4].
“Petroleum exploration in Kenya started in the 1950s when Shell and British Petroleum drilled 10 wells at the coastal town of Lamu that proved to be dry. With improved underground oil surveillance technology, more companies have since joined in: Woodside Energy (Australia), Chevron, Exxon, and Petronas of Malaysia. None of them has found commercially exploitable quantities of natural gas or oil. And it remains to be seen if CNOOC will buck this trend”[4].
It’s important to provide a more thorough research of the China-Kenya relations in order to understand what rights China actually has in Kenya. The most important question that has to be answered is whether China is able to extract oil or minerals in Kenya or not. If the answer is positive, then it will be reasonable to check if the part of the Nairobi National Park, that will be disconnected from the main part by the railway, has any deposits of minerals and oil. In this case, it may be possible that China has an idea of extracting these oil or minerals deposits, because after cutting the park into two parts, the smaller part will not be protected by the natural agency anymore, and therefore China will be able to start extracting deposits.
References
[1] Phoebe Parke, “Kenya's $13 billion railway project is taking shape”, http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/15/africa/kenya-railway-east-africa/
[2] Shem Oirere, “Kenya readies first standard-gauge line”, http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/africa/kenya-readies-first-standard-gauge-line.html
[3] Jacob Kushner, “Controversial Railway Splits Kenya’s Parks, Threatens Wildlife”, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/04/160412-railway-kenya-parks-wildlife/
[4] Michael Chege, “Economic Relations between Kenya and China, 1963–2007”.
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