CAIRO, June 28, 2018 (MENA) - Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli witnessed on Thursday the signing of a contract to manufacture and deliver 140 rail freight carriages, with a total cost of LE544 million. The contract was signed by the Transport Ministry, represented by Egyptian National Railways, and the Arab Organization for Industrialization, represented by SEMAF railway factory. Head of the Egyptian Railway Authority Sayed Salem along with Head of SEMAF factory Abdul Rahman Hussein inked the deal. "The development of the railway system is one of the key files prioritized by the new government," the premier said after the signing ceremony. The deal falls within the framework of the Transport Ministry's plan to supply the Egyptian National Railways with some 800 new carriages during the coming period, out of which 140 are set to be delivered at the first stage, Transport Minister Hisham Arafaat, who attended the event, said. The move aims at boosting the revenues of the Egyptian National Railways and reduce pressure on roads through increasing the rate of rail freight transport, in line with the Transport Ministry's plan to increase cargo transportation by rail to 25 million tons by 2022. As many as 3,200 kilometers of new roads have been built throughout the past four years, minster Arafaat stated, pointing to the renovation of more than 3,000 kilometers of roads, taking the number of the new and upgraded roads to about 7,000 kilometers. Chairman of the Arab Organization for Industrialization Abdel Aziz Seif el Din, who attended Thursday's ceremony as well, noted that the new 140 carriages which include 125 container flat wagons will be handed over within 16 months. The deal, which is being bankrolled by Egyptian banks, will contribute to reducing the prices of transported goods, Seif el Din went on to say.
