Egypt will receive the first passenger rail cars from Russia by July 2016, as part of a deal to supply Cairo with 700 cars, Transport Minister Saad el-Geoushy told Youm7 Monday.
A preliminary agreement was reached during Russian President Valdimir Putin’s visit to Egypt in February 2015. The deal is expected to be signed between the two state parties within days, Geoushy said.
The air-conditioned carriages cost the Egyptian government around 1 billion dollars. Egypt will receive some 40-50 carriages every month, he continued.
Besides the deal, the two states have agreed to establish a factory in Qalubiya governorate to manufacture the carriages, in coordination with the Egyptian National Railway (ENR) Authority.
Geoushy added that the carriages will be installed to the third class train vehicles and services will be available for citizens at suitable prices.
The government has been developing its railway services by importing new passenger cars supported with air conditioners.
Some six VIP trains have been installed between Cairo and Upper Egypt’s city Aswan. The trains were manufactured by the Arab Organization for Industrialization in cooperation with China, with 55 percent of its parts made in Egypt.
The VIP train is equipped with air-conditioning, Wi-Fi internet service, health services including a medic for urgent cases, and security cameras in every coach, he added.
