On Saturday August 8, 2015, Mohab Mamish of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), announced the start of dredging works at the new 9.5 kilometer-long shipping lane in East Port Said to facilitate international trade, according to the Cairo Post.
The SCA has contracted Alliance of Challenge with lifting 1,700 hectares of water-saturated sands within a period of five months.
An SCA Chairperson said the new shipping lane is parallel to East Port Said and aims to allow vessels to sail in both directions simultaneously, reducing the waiting time for international vessels passing from and to the main Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea.
Mr Mamish said that the new dredging works will form part of East Port Said’s development project and will be established on 2,600 of industrial zone.
The new Suez Canal, which was inaugurated on August 8, will help to facilitate two lanes of traffic and is anticipated to boost the volume of containerships going through the canal.
