Ore exports choked off after train derailment

Transnet Freight Rail has closed its iron ore rail line from Sishen to Saldanha after 107 wagons and two locomotives of a loaded ore train derailed last Thursday near Vredendal in the Western Cape.

No-one was hurt in the accident but the damage to the locomotives and wagons was "extensive", said Transnet spokesman Sandile Simelane.

Part of the train was travelling over a viaduct when the accident occurred, sending ore wagons hurtling dozens of metres into a river bed, while one diesel and an electric locomotive coupled to the rear part of the train sustained severe damage as they toppled down a rail embankment.

No ore trains will be able to move on the line, which is single track for most of its 861km length, until the wrecked wagons and locomotives have been moved and the track repaired. Simelane said the rail operator hoped to reopen the line at 6pm on Wednesday.

The cause of the accident is not yet known although sources believe a broken rail was the most likely culprit. "A team of expert engineers are investigating the root cause of the accident," Simelane said.

The train was carrying a load for ore miner Assmang.

Transnet said exports of iron ore in the 2010 financial year rose to 44.7 million tonnes, in line with customer commitments, compared with 36.8 million tonnes in the previous financial year, Reuters reports.