FDA ready to fund Raml tramway with €100M: French ambassador

CAIRO - 23 July 2019: The French Development Agency (FDA) is ready to fund the tramway project in Alexandria's Raml neighborhood with €100 million, French Ambassador to Cairo Stéphane Romatet said, revealing that the CEO of Vinci SA will visit Egypt soon.

Ambitious New Project Set To Restore Alexandria's Trams

An ambitious new modernization project supervised by the French Development Agency (FDA) and the European Union (EU) is set to restore the Alexandria Tram to its former glory. by Farah el-Akkad photos by Mohsen Allam Nothing compares to a leisurely stroll down the old, historic streets of Raml district in Alexandria.

The ambassador praised the Ministry of Transportation’s eagerness to deliver the payments of French companies working in Egyptian projects. The statements came in a meeting with officials from the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation on Monday.

The Egyptian side pledged to eliminate obstacles that may face French companies while executing projects in Egypt, particularly in the sector of metro lines construction. In light of the successful cooperation in that sector, the Ministry of Transportation representatives said they look forward to further French investments in railway and metro projects.

French companies are currently constructing - within a consortium - Greater Cairo’s fourth phase of the third metro line, the parallel line between old and new marg stations, and the Cotesca workshop at the first line.

The Egyptian Railway Authority (ERA) and the French National Railway Company are cooperating on a safety system in the rail line stretching from Giza to Beni Suef. There is also cooperation with Alstom to introduce electric signals in the Beni Suef - Asyut line, while Thales Group is accomplishing the electric signal in the lines of Cairo-Alexandria, and Asyut-Sohag-Nagaa Hamady. The progress in all those projects follows the set timeline.

A contract with a French consulting firm will be finalized soon to carry out studies pertinent to a prospective project to develop Abou Kir metro line in Alexandria.

Officials highlighted the eagerness of the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation to attract more investments in the transportation sector, and secure the necessary grants for its projects.

On his side, the ambassador expressed France’s eagerness to help Egypt succeed in transportation projects.

In 2015, the National Authority for Tunnels signed a contract with Vinci SA, Bouygues Travaux Publics S.A.S., Orascom, and Arabco to construct the fourth phase of Greater Cairo’s third metro line, as reported by Ahram Online.

That phase consists of five stations and extends over 5 kilometers between Heliopolis' Haroun station and Al-Nozha 1. Alstom is in charge of accomplishing the signaling system while Colas, Thales, and Orascom are assigned the electromechanical work. Orascom along with Oravia are executing the railway tracks.

In December 2017, Egypt and France signed a €344 million agreement to finance the purchase of 64 trains for the third and fourth metro lines. France is providing Egypt with a €172 million concessional loan that will be paid back over 53 years with a grace period of 20 years and an annual interest rate of 0.1 percent. The second half of the loan will be in the form of credit facilities by French credit company Coface.

France had financed the construction of Greater Cairo’s three metro line completed between 1979 and 2012, with loans amounting to around €1.2 billion.