File Photo: Alam El-Roum. Ahram.
Local news portal Cairo24 reported on Wednesday that the deal is set to be sealed on Thursday.
The move comes as Egypt continues to attract foreign investment, particularly from Gulf nations, in a bid to ease mounting foreign debt and address a widening budget deficit.
The deal is anticipated to be signed between Qatari Diar and Egypt’s New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA) to develop the Alam El-Roum area.
Under the deal, Qatari Diar will pay $3.5 billion for the land and contribute an in-kind investment valued at $26.2 billion for the project's construction and development.
Once fully operational, the large-scale coastal development is expected to become one of the most significant real estate and tourism ventures in Egypt, generating annual revenues of at least $1.8 billion.
As part of the deal, NUCA will receive 15 percent of the project’s profits, underscoring Egypt’s model of partnering with global investors to accelerate urban expansion and attract foreign direct investment in its coastal regions.
Under the current Extended Fund Facility (EFF) loan programme, Egypt is committed to using 50 percent of proceeds from its divestment plan, including the initial public offering (IPO) programme, to reduce the country’s debt ceiling.
A mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is expected to arrive in Cairo for discussions related to the completion of the fifth and sixth reviews of Egypt’s $8 billion EFF loan programme.
The fifth review, initially scheduled for completion in June, was delayed due to slow progress in implementing reforms to boost the private sector’s role in the economy, leading the IMF to merge the fifth and sixth reviews. Both are now expected to be completed in December.
During the annual IMF and World Bank Group meetings held in October in Washington DC, the Egyptian delegation highlighted recent positive economic indicators, the country’s new economic plan extending to 2030, and the first upgrade to Egypt’s credit rating in seven years.
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