The Egyptian government will offer a high-speed rail project for private sector participation next year after feasibility studies conclude "over the next six to 12 months", transportation minister Dr. Mohamed Rashad told Zawya.
"The full project is estimated to cost more than EGP 100 billion [USD 16.4 billion]. Some Asian, Arab, Chinese, Italian and Spanish companies have expressed interest in bidding for the project," Dr. Rashad said in a phone interview.
The high-speed train will link the cities of Alexandria, Cairo, Aswan and Hurghada at a speed of up to 300 kilometers per hour. "We are currently determining the proposed path that the track will take through the western desert to Cairo and then Aswan and finally to the Red Sea," the minister said.
Implementation of the project is expected to begin in the second half of 2013, in several phases, and will need four to five years to complete. "The rail link was proposed in 2010. But there were several constraints to implementation. We are taking it up seriously now," Dr. Rashad said.
© Zawya 2012
