Name of the Project
Accra SkyTrain.

Location
Accra, Ghana.

Project Owner/s
Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF) and Africa Investment (Ai) SkyTrain Consortium Holdings.

Ai SkyTrain Consortium Holdings comprises Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon, Bunengi Group and Ai Capital.

Project Description
The proposed SkyTrain is an elevated air-propelled light rail system, which uses steel wheels and rails on an elevated runway for low drag and energy optimisation.

The runway will be erected in prefabricated modular sections in prestressed concrete or steel.

SkyTrain blowers propel air, under low pressure, through a semisealed duct built into the runway.

The pressurised air pushes against a rigid propulsion plate attached to the underside of each SkyTrain vehicle.

This propulsion plate acts in the same that an upside down sail on a sailboat would, propelling each vehicle forward into a low pressure vacuum.

It also helps to stop it when the air flow is reversed. SkyTrain is designed to transport up to 10 000 passengers and hour in both directions.

Potential Job Creation
The project is expected to create 5 000 jobs during construction.

Capital Expenditure
The project is estimated at $3-billion.

Planned Start/End Date
Construction is expected to start in 2020.

Latest Developments
GIIF and Ai SkyTrain Consortium Holdings signed a concession agreement with the Ghana government in November towards the development of the transport system.

The concession marks the next step towards the completion of a feasibility study.

The project is expected to reach financial close in the final quarter of 2020 and start construction soon thereafter.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Too early to state.

Contact Details for Project Information
Ai SkyTrain, Huberto Danso, tel +27 11783 2431 or email info@AiSkytrain.com.
GIIF CEO Solomon Asamoah, tel +233302631318.