Upper Egypt Electricity Production Company asked the banks, which submitted an offer to finance South Helwan Power Plant, to amend the loan conditions and change the repayment method, sources said. National Bank of Egypt (NBE), Banque Misr, Commercial International Bank (CIB), National Société Générale Bank (NSGB), Arab African International Bank (AAIB) and Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt approved the company's request to extend the loan period from 10 years to 12 years, sources revealed. The EGP 3 billion loan will finance part of the investment cost of South Helwan Power Plant. Banks will meet next April to discuss the company's suggestions concerning amending the loan conditions, sources added. The power plant will operate three natural gas-run steam turbines and will be connected to the national power grid to meet the rising demand for electricity. Amwal Al Ghad had earlier reported exclusively that a consortium comprised of NBE, Banque Misr, CIB and AAIB had submitted an offer to finance the project, before NSGB and Faisal Islamic Bank joined the consortium. OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) has approved to offer US$ 50 million finance and Islamic Development Bank (IDB) also approved to offer an additional loan worth US$ 250 million to finance the power plant. The establishment cost of the South Helwan Power Plant is 13 billion. The electricity sector is one of the vital sectors in Egypt which receives finances from banks after 2011's revolution. The East Delta Electricity Production Company received loan worth EGP 1.6 billion from the National Bank of Egypt (NBE), Banque Misr, Piraeus Bank Egypt, Industrial Development Bank of Egypt and Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt to finance the establishment of four productive units at the Suez thermal power plant. The company also received loan worth US$ 110 million from the National Bank for Development (NBD), Banque Misr, Egyptian Gulf Bank, Al Baraka Islamic Bank of Egypt, Bank Audi Egypt and United Bank Egypt to finance the importing of turbine spare parts, in addition to EGP 4.6 billion loan.
