Egypt inks a contract with Austrian firm to produce and supply railroad switches: Austrian steel firm Voestalpine and Egypt’s national authority for railways — Egyptian National Railways (ENR) — signed two partnership contracts to manufacture and supply railway switches at the Abbasiya workshop, under joint company Voestalpine Egypt for Railway Switch Technology, on the sidelines of the Egyptian-Austrian Business Forum in Cairo last week, according to a cabinet statement.

The details: Voestalpine Egypt for Railway Switch Technology will produce 300 switches annually under the agreements, Egyptian Transport Minister Kamel El Wazir said. The partnership will improve the efficiency of the existing production line at the Abbasiya workshop by equipping it with advanced machinery, El Wazir explained. A new modern production line will also be established, complete with state-of-the-art equipment to produce switches for Egypt’s high-speed electric train network, he added.

Boosting local production: The establishment of a joint company aligns with the government's objective of attaining self-sufficiency in the production of switches, El Wazir said. Demand for switches has surged due to the various national projects the ministry is implementing, including the initiative to modernize 10k km of railways and several high-speed electric train network and metro development projects, El Wazir noted. There are also plans to export the excess production of switches to African and Middle Eastern nations, he added.

Egypt + Austrian heads of state set to meet for more transport talks: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi accepted Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer invitation to visit Austria, after the two met at Al Ittihadiya Palace last week. The date of the visit is yet to be determined. The two discussed cooperation in transport, manufacturing, and renewable energy, as well as regional and international issues of mutual interest, during their sit-down last week.

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