The project includes capacity expansion of the Alexandria West WWTP, enabling it to satisfy the needs up to the year 2050
European Investment Bank headquarters in Luxembourg. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Palauenc05)
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to offer €120m ($130.7m) to support the expansion and upgrade of the Alexandria West Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) in the Arab Republic of Egypt.
The project includes capacity expansion of the Alexandria West WWTP, enabling it to satisfy the needs up to the year 2050 and upgrade the treatment level at the facility.
The upgrade will transform the WWTP from primary to secondary treatment level to improve the quality of effluent from the plant, and facilitates depollution of Lake Maryout, and the Mediterranean Sea.
EIB Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood Operations Director Flavia Palanza said: “We are pleased to sign a new financing agreement to support such a vital sector in Egypt.
“The Alexandria West WWP will have an important impact on the lives of people living in Egypt’s second largest city. As the largest international financier to the water sector worldwide, we are proud to provide both financing as well as needed expertise to implement projects.”
Financing from EIB is to support the depollution of Lake Maryout
EIB said that the project is expected to support the depollution of Lake Maryout and the Mediterranean Sea to provide an additional source of water and improve the economic situation in the area, along with contributing to the objectives of the Clean Oceans Initiative.
In addition, the project is also aimed at improving the health and environmental situation of the people living in the Governorate of Alexandria.
EIB said that the financing from is part of the EU guarantee for EIB financing operations outside of the EU, and also includes a grant contribution from the EU’s Neighbourhood Investment Platform (NIP), to improve the sanitation services for the residents of Alexandria.
In addition, the project has been identified and designed with the support of the Mediterranean Hot Spots Investment Programme (MeHSIP), funded by the Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership (FEMIP) Trust Fund, using the Climate Action in the Middle East and North Africa (CAMENA) envelope.
European Union (EU) ambassador to Egypt Ivan Surkoš said: “The water sector is indeed high in the agenda of EU partnership with Egypt; this sector has been one of the main pillars of EU cooperation over the past 15 years.
“We are looking at how water is the key to socio-economic development, not just from the environmental perspective but also contributing to green growth and in particular through greater resource efficiency. The EU EUR 20 Million grant contribution to the Alexandria Waste Water Treatment Plant forms part of our efforts in that direction.”