Al-Masry Al-Youm has obtained documents revealing major setbacks with regard to the implementation of 17 projects by various companies in the Organization of Tourism Investors in Ain Sukhna for Environmental and Tourism Development. It is notable that work has not yet been started on the hotel portion of the project, which was considered an essential condition for allowing companies to purchase land from the Egyptian government at a reduced rate of US$1 per square meter. Despite the passage of 14 years since the signing of the agreement, the government has not seized the land it sold to the companies at reduced prices, as required by the agreement. The companies involved have only been subject to monetary penalties for the delays. The documents reveal that Arab investment company Wadi Rum had completed only 24.5 percent of its project as of last year, even though it obtained land from the government in 1994. The company has not yet begun construction work on the hotel, despite the fact that it signed a contract with the government to build it 14 years ago. Besides the Wadi Rum company, most of the other companies in the investment organization that signed contracts with the government during the period from 1994 to 1997 have completed less than 30 percent of their respective projects. Within this group are multinational conglomerates, including American Express. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
