POLISH train builder PESA is delivering two brand-new DMUs to the African country of Ghana for use on a new standard gauge line – and options for 10 more trains have been agreed.
The first unit, based closely on the Class 847 built for Czech Railways (see RM February p99) was undergoing testing on the Polish network in February. Once testing is complete, the trains will be shipped to Tema in Ghana via Hamburg.
The new 96.7km railway being built in Ghana connects the port in Tema, near the Capital Accra, with Mpakadan and is planned as the first phase of the 1000km Ghana-Burkina Faso Railway. Most of the older 1067mm gauge rail network in Ghana has been abandoned in the last few decades.