Suez Canal Area Development Project

Suez Canal Area Development Project
LocationSuez Canal region
Specifications
StatusCompleted
Navigation authoritySuez Canal Corridor Development Project Authority
History
Original ownerEgyptian Government
Principal engineerDar Al-Handasah
Construction began5 August 2014

The Suez Canal Corridor Area Project (Arabic: مشروع تطوير محور قناة السويس) was a megaproject in Egypt that was launched on 5 August 2014 by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and was completed in 2015. The project aimed to increase the role of the Suez Canal region in international trade and to develop the canal cities of Suez, Ismailia, and Port Said.

The project involved the construction of a new city, Ismailia, along with an industrial zone and fish farms, aimed at promoting the development of the tech industry. Additionally, seven new tunnels were built between Sinai, Ismailia, and Port Said, and improvements were made to five existing ports. The project also included the creation of new centers for logistics and ship services, and the digging of a new canal parallel to the Suez Canal. The purpose of the new canal was to increase capacity by allowing ships to sail in both directions simultaneously.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi announced that the New Suez Canal project would operate within a year (instead of the original plan of three years). The project's authority projected revenues of the canal to increase from 5 billion dollars to 12.5 billion dollars annually. The new canal channel and the seven (7) tunnels were under construction simultaneously. Construction of the rest of the projects (which included building the city, industrial zone, "technology valley", and fish farms) began in February 2015.