The Government of Egypt has signed a new loan agreement with the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development that will provide financing for two desalination plants in the country, informs Energy & Utilities.
The loan agreement, originally signed in November 2020, amounts to 5.5 million Kuwaiti dinars (about US$ 18,27 million). On July 25, Egypt announced the approval of the loan agreement by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.
The two new desalination plans will be located in the new cities of Rafah and Bir al-Abed in the North Sinai governorate, located in the north-eastern part of the country, on the Mediterranean coast.
Last year Egypt announced an ambitious five-year plan to increase its water supply with the construction of 47 desalination plants, worth 45.18 billion Egyptian pounds (approximately US$2.8 billion). The desalination facilities will be built in the governorates of North and South Sinai, Port Said, Ismailia, Suez, Dakahlia, Kafr E-Sheikh, Beheira Matrouh, and the Red Sea.
The five-year plan is under the supervision of the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA), the General Organization for Physical Planning, and the Holding Company for Water and Wastewater (HCWW). The goal is to produce 2.44 million m³ per day by 2025.
