Is the gov’t struggling to fund its share of USD 1.25 bn electric railway line?

The Transport Ministry appears to be struggling to arrange USD 500 mn to fund the government’s expenditure on the USD 1.25 bn electric railway project linking Salam City to 10 October City signed with Chinese firm AVIC. The ministry is now in talks with the company is an effort to get it to finance its portion of the project. It has also apparently reached out to the Housing Ministry to contribute to the funding, though sources tell Al Mal that the ministry is claiming that it is incapable of contributing to the project. China Export-Import Bank is covering USD 739 mn for the project. The ministry hopes to ink the final agreements with contractors — including Petrojet, Arab Contractors, Orascom Construction and AVIC — in September.