China, Egypt seal electric train deal as Xi tours Mideast

Egypt has sealed Wednesday the final agreement with the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), China’s largest aerospace and defense manufacturer, on building the first electric passenger train in the North African country.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, who is visiting the country for three days, have witnessed the signing between the AVIC and the Egyptian National Railway Authority.

The proposed 170 km-long two-way electric railway is set to link Egypt’s cities of 10th of Ramadan and El-Salam; it will be completed over 24 months.

The Export-Import Bank of China (Exim) will secure US$1.5 billion soft loan to finance the project.

This project is part of a $10 billion programme to create a high-speed rail line between Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast and the town of Aswan in Upper Egypt.