Kenya Railways Managing Director Philip Mainga said the cooperation had successfully run the first trial freight train on the newly constructed link connecting the Standard Gauge Railway and Meter Gauge Railway in Naivasha.

He said the cargo which was loaded at the Port of Mombasa and transported via the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), was seamlessly transshipped onto the Metre Gauge Railway (MGR) line at the Naivasha Inland Container Depot (NICD) and was now destined for Malaba.

Speaking during the event held at the Naivasha Inland Container Depot located at Mai-Mahiu, Mainga said the ICD facility had a capacity to handle 120,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit (TEUs) annually and that it will handle mostly transit cargo to the Great Lakes Region including Uganda, South Sudan, DR Congo, Northern Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi.

He added that the cargo to be handled at Naivasha ICD will account for 30% of imports and exports from the Port of Mombasa.

The MD said the SGR/MGR railway link was now expected to enhance efficiency and ease the transhipment process in the region.

By Fred Azelwa.