New Suez Canal Benefits, Costs, and RisksNew Suez Canal Benefits, Costs, and Risks (Suez Canal Area Development Project)Egyptian officials, especially the chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, Vice-Admiral Mohab Mamish, stated that the $8.2 billion project, which expands capacity to 97 ships per day, will more than double annual revenues to some $13.5 billion by 2023. That, however, would require yearly growth of 10%. A recent forecast from the IMF suggests that in the decade up to 2016 the annual rate of growth for global merchandise trade will have averaged 3.4%. About 18 scientists writing in the academic journal Biological Invasions in 2014 expressed concern about the project impacting the biodiversity and the ecosystem services of the Mediterranean Sea. They called on Egypt to assess the environmental effects that the canal expansion could cause, a request echoed by the executive secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Over 1,000 invasive species have entered the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal since its original construction in the mid-19th century, with human activities becoming a leading cause of the decline of the sea's biodiversity, according to the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. Initially, the project was to be financed through a stock market IPO, allowing partial private ownership of the project. However, the government quickly changed its financing strategy, relying on interest-bearing investment certificates that do not confer any ownership rights to investors. The certificates were issued by the Suez Canal Authority with an interest rate of 12%. New Suez Canal Revenues The government blocked access to the official revenues reports for three months after the opening. It then published two reports for August and September, which showed consecutive decreases in the total Suez Canal revenues by 10% or $150 million. Seven New Tunnels In 2014, the former chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, Mohab Mamish, announced that seven new tunnels will be dug to connect the Sinai Peninsula to the Egyptian homeland. Three tunnels will be dug in Port Said (two for cars and one for railways) and four will be dug in Ismaïlia (two for cars, one for railways, and one for other special uses). The tunnels will cost 4.2 billion dollars (approximately about 30 billion Egyptian pounds). The first three tunnels will cost 18 billion Egyptian pounds and Arab Contractors and Orascom are the builders for this project. Floating Bridge The Al-Nasr floating bridge to enable easy travel between Port Said and Port Fouad was built successfully and inaugurated in late 2016. The bridge extends from opposite banks, with the help of tugboats that push both parts until they connect to form a bridge that can be traversed by cars. It is 420 metres (1,380 ft) long. This was an important step towards the efficient movement of equipment and manpower. Technology Valley The technology valley is an ongoing project that was paused for 17 years and now the government announced plans to continue the project. The project's location lies on the eastern part of Ismaïlia city and consists of four stages: the first stage covers 3,021 acres (1,223 ha), the second stage covers 4,082 acres (1,652 ha), the third stage covers 4,837 acres (1,957 ha), and the fourth stage covers 4,160 acres (1,680 ha). However, when the project started it completed only 108 acres and then was put on hold. The completed technology valley will be the first step in starting Egypt's electronics industry for manufacturing technological devices. Industrial Zone The industrial zone project will cover 910 acres of land northwest of the Gulf of Suez. The first stage of the project covers 132 acres and it is done for 20 million Egyptian pounds. The second stage is 132 acres and it is not yet done. Currently, 23 factories are operating and 56 are still under construction. upon finishing the project it will provide 9386 work opportunities. The chairman of the Suez Canal authority also said that shipyards and services will be built along the Suez Canal corridor which includes: catering and services center for ships, a ship manufacturing and repair center, a center for manufacturing and repairing containers, and logistic redistribution centers. New Ismailia City This project will create "New Ismailia City", which will cover 16,500 acres of land. This new city will be created to accommodate approximately 500,000 Egyptians to relieve the pressure from the crowded towns of Cairo and the delta cities. The location of this city is designed to accommodate the workers of the nearby Wadi Al-thechnologia (Technology Valley) which will be built in the following years. Fish Farming Under the National Project for Fish Farming, new fish farms were built on the eastern side of the Suez Canal. The project includes twenty-three tanks that cover 120 square km with a depth of 3-5m. It covers the area from southern Tafrea to the Gulf of Suez. This project is designed to produce high-quality fish for food. Russian Industrial Zone During a state visit to Russia in 2014, President Sisi said that he had agreed with his Russian counterpart President Vladimir Putin to establish a Russian industrial zone in the new project. In May 2018, Egypt and Russia signed a 50-year agreement to construct the new industrial zone. Developing Existing Ports West Port - Port Said West West Port lies on the northern entrance of the Suez Canal and is considered one of the most important ports in Egypt because of its location on the entrance of the Suez Canal. The port covers an area of 2.9 square km (the land area is 1.2 square km and the remaining 1.7 square km is water area). The port contains 37 docks which include docks for passengers, yachts, and general goods. The port is divided into stations and each station contains several docks with its working area (that includes repairing centers, equipment center, and stores). The maximum capacity of the port is 12 million tons yearly. East Port - Port Said East East Port lies on the northwestern entrance of the Suez Canal and is an important link between the East and Europe. The port was built in 2004 to serve international trading and act as a transit center between the continents. The port borders the Mediterranean Sea from the north, the industrial zone from the south, the salty lakes from the east, and the Suez Canal branch from the west. The port covers an area of 35 square km. The port authority plans to build docks that will reach 12 km long and an industrial zone south of the port covering 78 square km. Three stages are remaining to fully complete and improve the port:
Ain-Sokhna Port lies at the southern entrance of the Suez Canal. The port's total size is 24,919,337.85 square m:
Arish Port Arish Port lies on the Mediterranean Sea on the northern coast of Arish city. In 1996 the port was transformed from a fishing port into an international trade port. The port contains a dock that is 242m long that can serve huge ships. There is another dock which is 122m long that serves smaller ships. The port also includes covered storage areas that cover 2 square km and non-covered storage areas which cover more than 2.7 square kilometres (1.0 sq mi). On 5 June 2014 the port was no longer controlled by the Port Said port authority, the Ministry of Defence took control of it due to its sensitive location. The port contains a lighthouse that can be seen from up to 18 miles (29 km). The main importance of the port is that it exports Sinai products to the Mediterranean countries. New projects include:
El-Adabiya Port lies on the western side of the Suez Canal, about 17 km from Suez City. The Red Sea Ports Authority in Egypt controls the port. El-Adabiya Port consists of 9 docks which reach 1840m long and 42–27 feet (12.8–8.2 m) deep. the water area is about 158 square km (which is also shared with the Suez Canal port and Petroleum Dock port) and the land area is 0.8 square km. The maximum carrying capacity of the port reaches 6.7 million tons yearly. In 2014, the Suez Canal Corridor Project Authority announced that El-Adabiya Port will be improved after the completion of the new Suez Canal to serve more ships. Suez Canal Area Development Project Overview Suez Canal Area Development Project Location: Suez Canal region Suez Canal Area Development Project Status: Completed Suez Canal Area Development Project Navigation Authority: Suez Canal Corridor Development Project Authority Suez Canal Area Development Project Original Owner: Egyptian Government Suez Canal Area Development Project Principal Engineer: Dar Al-Handasah Suez Canal Area Development Project Construction Began: 5 August 2014 | |||||
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