Egypt approves €250M loan for Alexandria metro project

CAIRO - 26 April 2023: The Official Gazette published President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s Decree No. 531 of 2022 regarding the approval of an agreement between Egypt and the French Development Agency (AFD) regarding a loan of €250 million in two tranches for the “Alexandria-Abu Qir” metro construction project.

 

The project aims to enhance transportation in Egypt, and in light of the implementation of the urban transport plan in Alexandria Governorate, the project will work to improve the level of line service and provide an effective and comprehensive means of transportation in the governorate.

 

This comes within the framework of a joint initiative with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), as the French Development Agency agreed to provide a loan to the Egyptian government intended to finance the project.

 

The management of the project has been delegated to the National Authority for Tunnels (the project implementing agency) as the executive body of the Egyptian Ministry of Transport, and as the agency responsible for the implementation of metro projects in Egypt.

 

A project management unit dedicated to the project will be established within the National Authority for Tunnels; This project management unit will also be strengthened with technical assistance. The Alexandria Passenger Transport Authority, the authority responsible for managing transportation in Alexandria, will be responsible for managing traffic throughout the duration of the works. The operation and maintenance of the line will be assigned to the operator, who will be selected through the tender process.

 

 

The total cost of the project is estimated at €1.764 billion. The French Development Agency (AFD) will provide the borrower with €250 million in the form of a soft sovereign loan dedicated to works contracts and the acquisition of railway vehicles. Financing will be supplemented by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (€250 million), the European Investment Bank (€750 million), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (€250 million) and the Egyptian government (€264 million).