Ferrofor
 | |
 Map of Ferrofor passenger lines in 2024. | |
 A Ferrofor Bombardier MX620 locomotive at Pionero Station, Ancolo. | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Acua |
| Key people | Jésus Mikamu Quinones (President) Felipe Beni (CEO) |
| Reporting mark | FNFO |
| Locale | Formosa |
| Dates of operation | 2001–present |
| Predecessors | Formosan Rail Transport Commissariat |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge |
Ferrocarriles Nacionales de Formosa, operating as Ferrofor, is a majority state-owned corporation operating the national passenger railway of Formosa. The company was established in 2002 with a 20-year mandate to operate Formosa's passenger system, receiving an additional 20-year mandate in 2022. Ferrofor is considered a high-performing rail system in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Service and system[edit | edit source]
As of 2024, Ferrofor operated four regular daily passenger lines: The Highland Line between Acua and Salvador de Mungo, the Gulf Line between Acua and Baraca, the Northern Line between Acua and Garua and the Southern Line between Baraca and Másucu.
Formosa's railways system consists entirely of Cape gauge railways. Since 2006, passenger service has been extended to Garua via a new segment north of Lamané. An approved line is planned to extend service south of Abongo, with further proposed lines envisioning connecting the network to Nigeria and the Congo.
Ferrofor's station infrastructure is of mixed quality. Stations in major urban areas are classified as metropolitan stations and mainly date from the 1970s. The oldest, Ohuendo Station in Baraca, is a 1920s Spanish colonial edifice maintained in good repair as a heritage landmark. Stations in between the major cities are often simple concrete platforms with access mainly by foot. The Southern Line in particular is considered by Ferrofor administration to have poor-quality stations, often with little to no shelter for passengers. Plans to improve these rural stations are constrained by budgetary and logistical concerns and magnified by sparse population in southern Formosa. Rail lines in the south also compete more frequently with cargo rail, which services the manganese extraction sector in southeastern Formosa.