The Suez Canal Authority is currently in negotiations with local banks for a bridge loan of $450 million, Egyptian financial daily Al-Mal reported yesterday.
The head of Suez Canal Authority Muhab Mamish told the newspaper that the funds would be allocated to pay the firms that will dig the new extensions to the canal. The loan would be negotiated at 3.25 percent interest.
This capital project was launched by Mamish in the presence of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on 5 August 2014.
Some of the world’s top dredging companies are taking part in this project which is designed to enlarge the transit capacity and to increase industrial activity in the area.
Egyptian officials say the deadline will be met, and the first ship will navigate through the new canal in early August 2015.