Egypt is set to establish the first factory in the country for producing multiple unit trains, which use electric traction and diesel, for its railways and a monorail in East Port Said, Ministry of Planning and Economic Development announced.

The announcement came during a meeting held on Wednesday and attended by Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala El-Said, Minister of Transport Kamel El-Wazir and the head of the Suez Canal Economic Zone Authority Yahia Zaki.

The meeting discussed the schedule of the project’s implementation, its economic studies, and the expected production volume.

The factory is expected to be managed by the Egyptian Railways Services and Maintainance Company (ERMAS) in partnership with the private sector, the Suez Canal Economic Zone, Egypt’s Sovereign Fund and a number of international companies.

Minister El-Wazir said that Egypt has an ambitious plan to establish a local multiple unit train industry, which is part of a wider project to localise the railway industry and serve the domestic and African markets in light of growing demand in locally and domestically.

El-Wazir added that establishing factories that produce multiple unit trainswill benefit Egypt’s national economy, provide hard currency and job opportunities, in addition to fulfilling the needs of the railway and metro sectors.

He also said that the industry is expected to export its products to Arab and African countries and paves the way for founding other complementary industries.

For her part, Minister El-Said said that investing in the transport sector, under Egypt’s strategic vision 2030, has contributed to improving Egypt’s ranking in the international competitiveness index on road quality and infrastructure from 118th place in 2014 to 28th in 2019.