Moatize is the principal town and administrative center of
Moatize District in western
Mozambique's Tete Province
Tete is a Provinces of Mozambique, province of Mozambique, located in the northwest of the country. It has an area of 98,417 km2 and a population of 2,648,941 (2017 census).
Tete, Mozambique, Tete is the capital of the province. The Cahora ...
. It is located on the eastern side of the
Zambezi River
The Zambezi (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than half of t ...
at the confluence of the Moatize and
Revuboe Rivers. After
Tete
Tete may refer to:
* Tete, Mozambique, a city in Mozambique
*Tété (born 1975), a French musician
*Tetê (born 2000), a Brazilian footballer
*Tete Montoliu (1933–1997), Spanish jazz pianist
**''Tete!'', an album by Tete Montoliu
*Tete Province ...
, it is the second largest urban area, by population, in western Mozambique.
Economy
The economy of Moatize is based in the extraction of natural resources, specifically
coking coal. The surrounding coal basin has an estimated 2.5 billion tons of coal. In 2006,
VALE
A vale is a type of valley.
Vale may also refer to:
Places Georgia
* Vale, Georgia, a town in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region
Norway
* Våle, a historic municipality
Portugal
* Vale (Santa Maria da Feira), a former civil parish in the municip ...
, a
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
ian company gained a concession to build and operate a coal mine at Moatize to export coal via rail to
Beira, a Mozambican port. As of 2012, eight mining companies operated within the greater Moatize area, including
Riversdale Mining, an Australian company.
Additionally, there are several small-scale businesses located in and around Moatize that cater to international businessmen engaged in the coal mining industry, including several small hotels, restaurants, and night clubs.
Transport
Mozambique's N7 Highway, the principle paved route heading east to Malawi, passes through town. Moatize is also the terminal stop on the rehabilitated
Sena railway
Sena railway, also called Shire Highlands railway, Dondo-Malawi railway and North-South Malawi railway, is a railway that connects Dondo, Mozambique, Dondo, Mozambique, to Chipata, in Zambia. It is 1000 km long, in a 3 ft 6 in gauge railways, 1 ...
(Dona Ana-Moatize branch line) that links western Mozambique to the port city of
Beira.
[Beira Rail Concession Project: Environmental Audit and Management Plan](_blank)
Maputo: Impacto, Projectos e Estudos Ambientais. 2004. pg. 58-60. To fully operationalize the line, approximately 670 km of railway was upgraded at a cost of $375m. The first train in more than two decades reached Moatize on January 30, 2010. A second line, the
Nacala railway
Nacala railway, also known as Northern Corridor railway and Nacala Corridor railway, is a railway line that operates in northern Mozambique on a lineGarcia, Ana.; Kato, Karina.Politicas Públicas e Interesses Privadas: uma análise a partir do Co ...
, connecting the Moatize basin with a new coal harbour at Nacala-a-Velha started operating in 2015. Construction of a third rail line connecting the Moatize basin with the Indian Ocean coast at Macuse, Zambezia, is now scheduled to start in 2017, after struggling with financing difficulties.
Construction of new port and railway in Mozambique begins in 2017
/ref>
Demographics
See also
* Railway stations in Mozambique
* Transport in Mozambique
References
Populated places in Tete Province
{{Mozambique-geo-stub