Suez Canal Area Development ProjectSuez Canal Area Development Project (مشروع تطوير محور قناة السويس)The Suez Canal Corridor Area Project or in Arabic: مشروع تطوير محور قناة السويس was a megaproject in Egypt that was launched on 5 August 2014 by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and was completed in 2015. The project aimed to increase the role of the Suez Canal region in international trade and to develop the canal cities of Suez, Ismailia, and Port Said. The project involved the construction of a new city, Ismailia, along with an industrial zone and fish farms, aimed at promoting the development of the tech industry. Additionally, seven new tunnels were built between Sinai, Ismailia, and Port Said, and improvements were made to five existing ports. The project also included the creation of new centers for logistics and ship services, and the digging of a new canal parallel to the Suez Canal. The purpose of the new canal was to increase capacity by allowing ships to sail in both directions simultaneously. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi announced that the New Suez Canal project would operate within a year (instead of the original plan of three years). The project's authority projected revenues of the canal to increase from 5 billion dollars to 12.5 billion dollars annually. The new canal channel and the seven tunnels were under construction simultaneously. Construction of the rest of the projects (which included building the city, industrial zone, "technology valley", and fish farms) began in February 2015. Suez Canal Corridor Area Project History The Suez Canal Corridor Developing Project dates back to the 1970s when former Egyptian Minister of Housing, Hassaballah El Kafrawy proposed the project to President Anwar al Sadat. Due to various problems, the project failed to start. He proposed the project again to President Hosni Mubarak in the 1990s, but to no avail. Hassaballah El Kafrawy sought to turn the canal corridor into an international logistics region rather than just a passageway for ships. In 2008, the former Minister of Transportation, Mohamed Mansour again proposed the project. However, the Egyptian government again did not initiate the project. In 2012, the Muslim Brotherhood introduced a development project for the Suez Canal region during the presidential elections. In 2013, Prime Minister Hesham Qandil announced that the government would begin planning for the project. Suez Canal Corridor Area Project Projects New Suez Canal Overview New Suez Canal Length: 35 km (22 miles) New Suez Canal Locks: None New Suez Canal Status: Open New Suez Canal Navigation Authority: Suez Canal Authority New Suez Canal Original Owner: Suez Canal Authority New Suez Canal Principal Engineer: Egyptian Armed Forces (EAAF) New Suez Canal Other Engineer(s): The Arab Contractors Orascom Construction Industries 84 other companies New Suez Canal Construction Began: 5 August 2014 New Suez Canal Date of First Use: 6 August 2015 New Suez Canal Date Completed: 9 December 2016 New Suez Canal Branch Of: Suez Canal (Length 193.30 km) The New Suez Canal (Egyptian Arabic: قناة السويس الجديدة Kanāt El Sewēs El Gedīda) is an artificial waterway project in Egypt which created a second shipping lane along part of the Suez Canal, and deepened and widened other stretches. The project was inaugurated by the Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority Mohab Mamish in the presence of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on 5 August 2014. The new canal opened one year later in a ceremony attended by several international dignitaries including the former French President François Hollande. The New Suez Canal is expected to expand trade along the fastest shipping route between Europe and Asia. The new canal allows ships to sail in both directions at the same time. This decreases transit time from 18 to 11 hours for most ships. The expansion is expected to double the capacity of the Suez Canal from 49 to 97 ships a day. The New Suez Canal is 72 km (45 mi) long, including 35 km (22 mi) of dry digging, and 37 km (23 mi) of "expansion and deep digging" to provide a second shipping lane in the existing 164-kilometre-long (102 mi) canal, allowing for separated passing of ships in opposite directions. It also includes the deepening and expansion of a 37-kilometre-long (23 mi) section of the existing canal. The construction, which was scheduled to take three years, was instead ordered by the President to be completed in a year. The chairman of the Suez Canal Authority announced that the revenues from the Suez Canal (after the completion of the New Suez Canal) will jump from 5 billion dollars to 12.5 billion dollars annually. The Egyptian government said that these revenues will be used to transform the cities along the Canal (Ismaïlia, Suez, and Port Said) into international trading centers. The government has also said that many new projects in the Suez province are being studied as a result of enlarging the Suez Canal capacity, such as building a new industrial zone, fish farms, and the completion of the Valley of Technology (wadi al thechnologia). The project cost around 30 billion Egyptian pounds (approximately 4.2 billion dollars) and no foreign investors were allowed to invest in the project, but rather Egyptians were urged to participate in funding the project through bank certificates of deposit initially yielding 12%, later raised to 15.5%. The Egyptian Armed Forces participated in the project by helping in digging and designing the canal. The enlarged capacity allows ships to sail in both directions at the same time over much of the canal's length. Beforehand, much of the canal was only one shipping lane wide, with limited wider basins for passing. This is expected to decrease waiting time from 11 hours to 3 hours for most ships, and to increase the capacity of the Suez Canal from 49 to 97 ships a day. New Suez Canal Progress Technical difficulties initially arose, such as the flooding of the new canal through seepage from the existing canal. Nevertheless, work on the New Suez Canal was completed in July 2015. The channel was officially inaugurated with a ceremony attended by foreign leaders and featuring military flypasts on 6 August 2015, in accordance with the budgets laid out for the project. Point Coordinates
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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