SNIM ore train Alsthom locos, Mauritania

a stamp issued in 1971

a short train seen in 1994 (wikimedia)

A total of 21 of these diesel-electrics were built by Alsthom of France in two batches between 1961 and 1965 for the Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière or SNIM of Mauritania.

This 717 km railway today sees impressively long ore trains (about 2 km in length) from the ore mines through the desert to the port.  From 1981 the Alsthoms were supplemented and then replaced by US built EMD SDL40-2s. These are still used for SNIM's passenger trains.

The railway was shown in the Michael Palin BBC series Sahara.

Axle arrangement: Co'Co'
Gauge     1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Length     22,732 mm (74 ft 7 inches)
Weight:
First batch:  CC 01-11: 126 tonnes (277,800 lb)
Second batch: CC 12-21: 138 tonnes (304,200 lb)
Top speed:  CC 01-11: 70 km/h (43 mph)
CC 12-21: 60 km/h (37 mph)
Prime mover:   2 x diesel @ 1,030 kW (1,380 hp) output