Suez Canal: Does the Egypt has spent 8 billion dollars for nothing? – L’Express

Part of the French press has welcomed the presence of François Hollande at the inauguration of a second route of the Suez Canal on Thursday. On the occasion of these grandiose festivities-including the cost is estimated at $ 30 million by the agency Bloomberg- Sissi “imperator” Marshal wore his clothes.

The pump of the ceremony evoked President Nasser, the hero of the country, which nationalized the canal in 1956. But to add to the grandeur of the event, the president Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, came to power for the overthrow of his predecessor, inaugurated the new way aboard the ship of King Farouk and scrolls extras wearing costumes of the era of the pharaohs.

Reuters / Amr Abdallah Dalsh

The journalists, themselves, could not contemplate the spectacle quips Buzzfeed “. The journalists-including the army assured the déplacement- arrived one hour after the start of the ceremony, and were held in a room for the rest of the day”

The journalists at the inauguration of the Suez Canal

Maged Atef / Screenshot Buzzfeed

Yet there is enough doubt the usefulness of such debauchery means, presented as a way to revive the economy exangue Egypt. “No feasibility study has been performed before the initiation of work, falls within the Washington Post There’s only got an order from the president.”

A huge project for dubious benefits

The Egyptian media in the pay of the military regime for several months sing the praise of the prowess of this extraordinary site . The new path is to double traffic by 2023, ensures Cairo. To date, some 97 ships will borrow the channel daily against 49 currently, promises the authority of the canal. The new channel is a feat equivalent to the first, “equivalent to the passage of a nation from darkness to light”, according to Mohab Mamish, the director of the Suez Canal Authority, Mohab Mamish. Unlike slogans plastered to the glory of the project, it is far to “change the world map,” notes the Egyptian opposition Mada Masr website: “When it was introduced in 1867, the Suez Canal, reduced the distance of 8900 km between Asia and Europe and is passed from 24 to 14 the number of days commuting between London and the Persian Gulf. ” The new route of the canal will reduce from 18 to 11 hours waiting time of ships.

The revenues should double the canal, providing the authorities: 5.3 billion dollars (4.7 billion euros) in 2015 $ 13.2 billion (11.7 billion euros) in 2023, according to the authorities.

But maritime traffic has fallen sharply since the crisis of 2008. “At the moment, the speed is not a key factor in the container, the type of vessels using the channel most “says an expert shipping Bloomberg.

exaggerated Optimism

The government projections seem based on overly optimistic assumptions on world trade, “said London-based consultancy Capital Economics Economics, author a study on the subject published August 3, for which the figures are “baseless and unrealistic.”

Capital Economics calculates that global trade is expected to increase by 9% per year to allow increase revenues announced by the authorities. Currently, world trade is growing at about 3% per year, and during the boom of the early 2000s, it increased by about 7.5%. The Egyptian president had given a year this project. It has been successful, with a subscription of about $ 9 billion that has attracted many Egyptians. The other bet, the fallout remains to hold.