US, DBSA lend $753m to fast-track Lobito Corridor rail line for Congo and Zambia copper

The US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) signed a $553m loan agreement on 17 December 2025 for the Lobito Atlantic Railway project, the centrepiece of Washington's push to build an alternative export route for critical minerals out of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia. The DFC loan was combined with $200m from the Development Bank of Southern Africa, bringing the total package to $753m, alongside project sponsors Trafigura, Mota-Engil and Vecturis.

What the money builds

The financing funds rehabilitation of roughly 1,300km of the Benguela railway, running from the Copperbelt border through Angola to the Atlantic port of Lobito, along with upgrades to the port itself. The sponsors have said the work should increase the corridor's transport capacity roughly tenfold and cut transport costs for minerals moving along it by as much as 30%, a significant saving for copper and cobalt currently trucked or railed out through more congested and costly southern and eastern African routes.

Geopolitics of a rail line

The Lobito Corridor has become one of the most closely watched infrastructure projects on the continent precisely because of what it represents beyond engineering: a US-backed alternative to Chinese-financed logistics routes for the copper and cobalt that underpin electric vehicle and battery supply chains. Analysts have described the December 2025 loan signing, which proceeded despite a change of US administration, as confirmation that Washington views the corridor as a long-term strategic priority rather than a one-off Biden-era initiative.

What it means for the Copperbelt

For mining companies operating in the DRC and Zambia, from Ivanhoe Mines' Kamoa-Kakula complex to Zambia's established Copperbelt producers, a functioning Lobito route offers a shorter, cheaper path to the Atlantic than the existing options through South African and Tanzanian ports, potentially improving netback prices for copper and cobalt shipments once the upgraded line and port are operational.

Officials involved in the project have said additional financing tranches are likely as construction progresses, with further private capital expected to follow once the rehabilitated line demonstrates reliable capacity gains, a milestone that will be closely tracked by mining companies weighing whether to commit long-term offtake volumes to the corridor.

Sources

• Southern African Times: United States Agency Approves $553 Million Loan for Angola Railway Revitalisation, 17 Dec 2025
• DFC: DFC Announces Investments Supporting Development Along Lobito Corridor, 17 Dec 2025
• Ecofin Agency: Trump Administration Advances Biden-Era Financing for Angola's Lobito Corridor, 19 Dec 2025

Photo: The port of Lobito in Angola, the Atlantic terminus of the Lobito Corridor rail line being upgraded to export Copperbelt minerals. David Stanley from Nanaimo, Canada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.