Mauritania: Iron Ore Train
The iron ore train in Mauritania, often referred to as the “Sahara Express,” is the longest and heaviest trains in the world. It operates on the Mauritania Railway, which runs between the mining town of Zouerat deep in the Sahara Desert and the port city of Nouadhibou on the Atlantic coast. The train is up to 2.5 km (about 1.55 miles) long and consists of around 200-210 cars, each carrying approximately 84 tons of iron ore, resulting in a total weight of around 17,000 tons fully loaded. The train travels a distance of about 700 km (435 miles), taking around 20 hours to complete. The iron ore transported by the train is the top export for Mauritania, accounting for almost 50% of total exports.
