Egypt to unveil Suez Canal extension amid nationalist fervor

“Petroleum products will arrive faster”, proclaimed Suez Canal Authority head Admiral Mohab Mohamed Hussein Mameesh.

The project consists of 37 kilometres of new, parallel waterway and 35 kilometres of deepening and widening of the existing canal. “Egypt is serving the whole the world by speeding up this naval passage”.

The Suez extension was announced by Sisi a year ago and billed as a major national accomplishment on a par with President Gamal Abdel Nasser’s nationalisation of the Suez Canal in 1956 and the building of the Aswan Dam.

The route of the Suez Canal now is more appealing for sea cruises with much less time span, a traveller now can enjoy a richer trip in a shorter time.The canal has since transformed global trade.The government hopes the project will more than double revenues from Suez Canal tolls, a key income generator for Egypt, from the $5.3 billion projected for 2015 to $13.2 billion in 2023. “If there are nine ships, one has to wait outside the canal”.

“[There are] questions about the merits of the overall project”.

Security consideration permitting the strains of Verdi’s Aida will sound over Thursday’s official opening of the new two-way Suez Canal. Authorities say the canal is completely safe. “On the oil side, the canal’s importance is likely to wane as European Union oil imports from the Middle East fall”. The Egyptian government now forecasts an unprecedented upswing for the deteriorating economy.

“It’s a high-risk strategy”, Lambert said.

The Egyptian envoy stressed the anticipated meeting of the presidential committee would discuss some aspects of the four freedoms agreement beside several other joint strategic issues.

Drawing on the intense nationalist sentiment that surrounds the Suez Canal, the project was also financed with £5bn in public funds, raised via investment certificates that sold out in just eight days.The speed with which the Egyptian army and two consortia of worldwide dredging companies have executed the canal expansion has caused general surprise in the global shipping industry.

A World Bank country director confirmed that the bank is participating in the project in an advisory capacity saying it would “change the economic landscape of Egypt and create sustainable job opportunities for brilliant and energetic Egyptian youth”.

The canal was completed in 1869 and it allowed ships to get from Europe to South Asia without sailing around Africa.