Abu Dhabi – Mubasher: The UAE’s Minister of Finance (MoF) and the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance (DoF) have signed an agreement for financing the second phase of the Etihad Rail national rail network.

The second phase will extend for 605 kilometres from Ghuweifat, which locates on the border with Saudi Arabia, to Fujairah on the east coast, the state news agency WAM reported.

By completing this phase, the volume of good transported will increase to 50 million tonnes instead of 7 million.

Earlier in 2018, Etihad Rail reported the completion of the preliminary designs of the new phase in preparation to launch tenders for civil construction works by the end of November.

“The budget approval for stage two of the United Arab Emirates’ national railway network reflects the keenness of our leadership to implement national strategic projects,” Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chairman of DoF and chairman of the Etihad Rail, said.