Suez Canal Expansion Contract Awarded
The Suez Canal Authorities has awarded a $1.5 billion expansion contract to a consortium consisting of Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Netherlands), Van Oord, NMDC (Abu Dhabi) and Jan de Nul (Belgium).
Each partner will be paid an equal share of $375 million to revamp the Suez Canal, an essential shipping link between Europe and Asia.
The plan to build a second Suez Canal parallel to the existing canal was announced by president Al-Sisi in August. It is meant to put an end to the one way traffic in some parts of the canal and avoid congestion on one of the most important shipping routes in the world.
The project will also bring employment to the area and revive the economy.
The canal generates $5 billion in toll revenue a year for Egypt. A parallel shipping lane will almost double the number of ships that pass through the canal and take it from 49 to 97 ships a day.
Egypt expects toll revenue to rise to over $13 billion annually. It also plans to develop 76,000 square km (29,000 square miles) in the area into an international industrial and logistics hub to attract more ships and generate income.
The majority of the dredging activities for the canal expansion will be dug with 17 cutter suction dredgers. The project will begin in 2014 and is expected to be complete in 2015.
