KFAED, Egypt sign $106m loan to finance power station in Assiut

Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) signed on Monday a loan agreement with Egypt totaling KD 30 million (USD 106 million) to help finance a power station in southern Assiut province generating 650 Megawatt. KFAED Director General Abdulwahab Al-Bader signed the agreement with Egyptian Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Dr. Ashraf Al-Araby. After the signing ceremony, the Egyptian minister expressed, on behalf of the Egyptian government, appreciation for KFAED''''s support and the Kuwaiti role in supporting the Egyptian economy during this important phase. Al-Araby said that he also looking forward to further boost cooperation between Egypt and KFAED to support more developmental projects in Egypt during the coming period. The minister said the easy loan has a fixed interest rate of 2.5 percent. Ashraf added that the project aims at contributing to growing demand for electricity, and enhance power grid network. He said the Egyptian government is keen to attract foreign investment to this project, whose total value is around USD 597 million. For his part, Al-Bader said that KFAED continues to support development projects in Egypt, noting that there are still many projects agreed upon between the two sides and will be funded during the coming period. He added that Kuwaiti-Egyptian relations are deeply rooted, noting that the existing cooperation between the Egyptian government and KFAED extends to more than 50 years. Al-Bader also revealed that a team from KFAED will be heading to Egypt next April to fund another electricity project west of Cairo