Egypt and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have signed a €1.128 bn agreement to support investments in the rehabilitation and expansion of metro and tram systems in Alexandria and Cairo. Three rail projects will benefit from the EIB financing.
The first investment of €138 million will support the rehabilitation and extension of the existing 13.8-km El-Raml tram line in Alexandria. The second (€750 million) will support the rehabilitation and upgrade of the 22-km Abu Qir railway into a high-capacity metro (Alexandria Metro). The third investment of €240 million will support the rehabilitation of the Cairo Metro Line 2 that has been in operation for 23 years and requires urgent upgrades of its electrical and mechanical systems.
The EIB financing agreement will be signed in two tranches. The first tranche of €600 million was signed today and the second tranche of €528 million will be signed early next year.
In addition to the EIB’s financing, the EIB Economic Resilience Initiative and the EU Neighbourhood Investment Programme (EU NIP) provided grants for technical assistance and advisory supporting the preparation of the three projects.
The Minister of Transport Kamel Al-Wazir noted that the pre-qualification works for the Abu Qir line and its conversion to a metro line have been tendered, while the tender documents for the El-Raml tram project are being finalised.
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