Why the standard gauge railway is not cost-effective

[Kadudu]

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We were conned and some local guys starting at that house of the on the hill pocketed a lumpsome of the SGR cash.

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Opinion-and-Analysis/Why-the-standard-gauge-railway-is-not-cost-effective/-/539548/2977014/-/ncdmnq/-/index.html

[Georgesoros]

Move on bro. Loan has to be paid. Just make sure we are not Greece.

[Kadudu]

You mean we are paying for the next 30 years. We have not paid the loan back.
Do not forget Greece has the EU behind it. Who does not does Kenya have to fall back too?

BTW, here is another option for Kenya

Some African countries may seek to renegotiate repayment of existing debts to China as a way of helping their economies hit by lower crude and commodity prices ..........

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Africa-to-focus-on-China-debt-at-Jo-burg-summit/-/539552/2978098/-/qpk4qpz/-/index.html

Move on bro. Loan has to be paid. Just make sure we are not Greece.

Move on bro. Loan has to be paid. Just make sure we are not Greece.

[Kim Jong-Un's Pajama Pants]

What exactly does single track mean?  Does it mean the trains can only move in one direction at a time?  There is absolutely nowhere where there are more than one track?

[MOON Ki]

What exactly does single track mean?  Does it mean the trains can only move in one direction at a time?  There is absolutely nowhere where there are more than one track?

Trains travel in both directions, but they have to use sidings to pass each other.  Doesn't look like there's more than one track anywhere.   

[Kim Jong-Un's Pajama Pants]

What exactly does single track mean?  Does it mean the trains can only move in one direction at a time?  There is absolutely nowhere where there are more than one track?

Trains travel in both directions, but they have to use sidings to pass each other.  Doesn't look like there's more than one track anywhere.   

Ok.  Makes sense.  That means the average speeds are not going to be as great as one would anticipate in a situation where you don't have to coordinate the trains.  It won't necessarily be half, but still significantly slower than if there were two tracks.  Two tracks will probably mean double the cost; perhaps more in the Kenyan setup.

[Georgesoros]

To be fair, this was negotiated during kibakis time. Kenyatta did the financial negotiation.

[MOON Ki]

To be fair, this was negotiated during kibakis time. Kenyatta did the financial negotiation.

As far as I recall, the only thing Kibaki's government signed was an MoU (non-binding).   Uhuru did not have to go through with it, if it made no financial sense, which they had been told---by the World Bank, the EAC's own independent consultants, etc.   And having decided to go through with it, they did not have to include some padding for the eating.   

Another factor that is yet to be discussed is that chances of the line not being a total economic failure are dependent on calculations assuming cargo all the way to Uganda and Rwanda.   When does the line get extended past Nairobi, and at what cost?

[RV Pundit]

Ethiopia though doesn't include the rolling stocks; kenya contracts was padded with an extra 100b ostensibly to gather for trains and coaches.

[Kadudu]

100B for trains and coaches? That is a very high price. Somebody must have made a killing.
Personally I do not believe your version. If the experts come with the price per km railway and you come up with such a simple explanation, things just do not add up. Are the rail experts naive?
BTW the original price was 360B and that was without the trains and coaches. These came in much later as our local guys realised the spoils had to be spread to RV.

Ethiopia though doesn't include the rolling stocks; kenya contracts was padded with an extra 100b ostensibly to gather for trains and coaches.

[Kim Jong-Un's Pajama Pants]

Lest one forgets that the brother south of the Limpopo has also refused to eat grass.  It has been an eating season on the rail tracks.

Rail parastatal Prasa launched a dramatic court action this week to recover from one of South Africa's biggest ever tender debacles involving billions of rands.

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa wants the Spanish company that provided the controversial Afro 4000 trains - found to be unsuitable for the local rail network - to take back its stock and refund the R2.65-billion already paid to it.

The deal attracted international headlines when it was discovered earlier this year that the trains were too tall for South Africa's railways.

It has also emerged that Prasa executives involved in the deal could face criminal charges for their part in the scandal.

Court papers filed this week detail allegations of blatant collusion in the tender process, designed to favour certain individuals from the start.

Says Molefe: " The specification for the tender was authored by Mtimkulu ... the specifications used to assess the bid proposals during the technical evaluations was irrational in that it included specifications that had no purpose other than to provide an advantage to Swifambo."

http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/stnews/2015/11/29/Take-back-your-trains-Prasa-seeks-refund-in-dodgy-tender-debacle