Egypt gets $98 mln from Kuwait to fund joint powerline with Saudi Arabia

Egypt's government has inked a 25-year loan agreement with the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), under which it will secure $98 million (KWD 30 million) to fund its planned powerline project with Saudi Arabia, KFAED director general, Abdulwahab Ahmed Al-Bader said in a statement.

The project cost is estimated at KWD 519 million, while the loan covers about 15 percent.  

The loan, which has a grace period of five years, will be repaid in 40 biannual installments at an interest rate of two percent, in addition to a service charge of 0.5 percent per annum, Al-Bader added.

Under the project, a 1,300 kilometer cable will be extended from the Badr converter in Egypt to the converter east of Medina in Saudi Arabia.

The latest advance brings total Kuwaiti loans given to the Egyptian government to $2.3 billion.