Cairo – Mubasher: Egypt’s National Authority for Tunnels (NAT) has signed a $1.2 billion agreement with China’s EximBank to finance a light rail system.

The line of the new electric train will begin from an industrial city on the outskirts of Cairo to reach the New Administrative Capital, Egypt’s transportation minister Hesham Arafat Said.

The loan has a 1.8% interest and a five-year maturity, Arafat added, noting that $461 million of the financing will be allocated to infrastructure, while the other $739 million will cover the projected train’s cost.

The rail line will cover 67.846 kilometres and comprise 11 stations (61 km surface tracks, 6.1 km over an upper bridge, and 0.665 km in tunnels).