In 1904, the Otavi Mining and Railway Company in German South West Africa acquired fifteen 0-6-2T locomotives from Arnold Jung Lokomotivfabrik in Germany.

[1][2][3] Construction of the 600 millimetres (23.62 inches) narrow gauge Otavi Railway in German South West Africa (GSWA), which heads northeastward from Swakopmund via Usakos and Otjiwarongo, commenced in November 1903.

[4] On 1 April 1910, the Otavi Railway and its assets were purchased by the German Administration for £1,000,000 under a lease agreement in terms of which the mining company would continue to operate the line for a further ten years.

Their coal bunkers had a capacity of 15 long hundredweight (0.8 tonnes), while their side tanks carried 770 imperial gallons (3,500 litres) of water.

Since the Otavi railway traversed the Namib Desert, the engines were often seen with rectangular auxiliary water tenders in tow.

[1][2][3] During the First World War, the former German Colony came under South African administration and the railways in GSWA came under control of the Union Defence Forces.