This edition of the Belt and Road Monitor covers developments from 1 to 31 December. If you enjoy our Belt and Road coverage, consider checking out Janes IntelTrak, a visual analytic tool that tracks and maps the global activities of Chinese and Russian companies in real time and includes expanded analysis of projects highlighted in "Top Developments." The Monitor draws from transactional data collected daily by our proprietary tool, Janes IntelTrak, as well as research compiled by our team of analysts.
Belt & Road at a Glance
Chinese BRI Transactions in USD Billions
Graph notes: These transactions include Chinese loans and grants but also contracts and subcontracts. Not all transactions will come to fruition, and this graphic does not account for cancellations, disruptions, failure to disburse funds, etc. This depicts the announced values of transactions with involving Chinese entities operating overseas, which could include Chinese funded projects but also foreign funded projects involving Chinese contractors, across multiple BRI-linked sectors.
Top Developments
Huaxin Cement Signs USD1 Billion Deal to Acquire Lafarge Africa
On 1 December 2024, Huaxin Cement was reported to have reached a deal to acquire an 83.8% ownership stake in Lafarge Africa from Switzerland’s Holcim. This is Huaxin Cement’s largest acquisition to date and one of a steady cadence of acquisitions in Sub-Saharan Africa over the past few years. Lafarge Africa has four cement plants in Nigeria and the acquisition positions Huaxin Cement as the second-largest cement producer in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Chinese SOE to Develop Hydropower Dam in Afghanistan’s Kabul River Basin
On 2 December 2024, MCC Tongsin signed a co-operation agreement to develop the Baghdara Hydropower Project in Kapisa Province, Afghanistan. The hydropower dam would support operations at the Mes Aynak copper mine and address one of the key obstacles to the mine’s development which has been under lease to a Chinese company since 2007. The original contract for the mine stipulated the construction of a power plant, railway, and processing facility. In July 2024, construction on the mine’s access road began.
CTI Group Acquires Greek Marine Services Lab
On 2 December 2024, Centre Testing International Group (CTI Group), headquartered in Shenzhen, announced it had finalised the full acquisition of Naias Scientific Analytical Laboratories Societe Anonyme (NAIAS Labs). NAIAS Labs is based in Piraeus, Greece where China’s COSCO Shipping has significant ownership and operating interests at the port. CTI Group will fold NAIAS Labs into CTI-Maritec, the company’s Singapore based subsidiary that provides marine testing, certification, inspection, and surveying services. NAIAS Lab provides cargo inspection and fuels, lubricant, and water testing services.
Chinese SOE Signs Joint Venture Agreement to Operate Malaysia’s East Coast Rail Link
On 18 December 2024, Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd (MRL) and China Communications Construction Corporation (CCCC) created a joint operating company under a 50-50 ownership structure that will manage, maintain, and operate Malaysia’s East Coast Rail Link (ECRL). The ECRL is a 665-km rail network linking the Port Klang on the Malacca Strait with northeast Malaysia. CCCC was awarded the construction contract for the ECRL in 2016. The USD12.8 billion project is 70% complete as of November 2024.
CIDCA Sponsored Programming Launched at China-Africa-UNIDO Centre of Excellence
On 23 December 2024, the first training programme under the China-Africa-UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) Centre of Excellence based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia was launched. The capacity building programme titled the “Overseas Workshop on Leadership Development for High and Mid-level Civil Servants of Ethiopia” provided training to 80 Ethiopian government officials and was sponsored by the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA). The centre was inaugurated in July 2024.
New Project Locations
What They're Saying
ROBERT D. BLACKWILL, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and RICHARD FONTAINE, CEO of the Center for a New American Security
On how China and Russia collaborate at the United Nations to further joint objectives.
“China has utilized the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to rally votes in the UNGA behind Russian policy preferences. For instance, on a 2022 UNGA resolution that called on Russia to withdraw its forces from Ukraine, thirty-six of the thirty-eight countries that opposed or abstained were BRI recipients. In February 2023, the UNGA passed another resolution that called for an end to the conflict: thirty-five of the thirty-nine abstentions or opposing votes received BRI funds.”
By the Numbers
