Formed in 2013 as a black economic empowerment company, the Gibela Rail Transport Consortium comprises of French rail company Alstom and South Africa’s Ubumbano Rail.
Gibela’s contract with the South African government is to manufacture 600 trains for the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA). The scope of the contract includes train maintenance, technical support and the manufacture and supply of spare parts.
Today, state-of-the-art X’trapolis MEGA commuter trains are rolling off the production line at Gibela’s bespoke factory in South Africa’s Ekurhuleni metropolis.
In fulfilment of contractual obligations to PRASA, Gibela is training thousands of historically disadvantaged South Africans, mainly women – in technical skills for both Gibela and the manufacturing industry at large. Gibela continuously draws scores of South African companies, many of them black-owned start-ups, into its supply chain and works to improve the lives of people in its neighbouring communities.
Our vision is to lead the revitalisation of South Africa railway sector and become a catalyst in PRASA’s endeavours to elevate commuter rail as a transport mode of choice for all people in urban area.