Egypt’s Housing, Utilities & Urban Communities and Transport ministries have extended the period for firms to prequalify for the contracts to build, finance and maintain a high-speed railway system and two monorail schemes to 28 January, according to sources familiar with the scheme.

The initial prequalification deadline for the high-speed railway, which will link Ain Sokhna on the Red Sea coast and the new Alamein city on the Mediterranean coast, was 14 January.

The original deadline for prequalifying for the two monorail packages was 15 January.

The first monorail package is 35km long and will link Giza to 6^th of October city.

The second monorail package will extend 52 kilometres from Nasr City district in Cairo to the New Cairo Capital.

All projects are to be executed using a combined engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and financing model.

MEED earlier reported that the Egyptian authorities have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Canada’s Bombardier to undertake a study for the establishment of a monorail from Nasr City to New Cairo and the new administrative capital.

A Bombardier-led consortium as well as another team, led by China Gezhouba Group Corporation (CGGC), have also previously submitted an offer for the monorail system that will link Giza with 6^th October City.

It is unclear how the latest tendering round will impact the ongoing negotiations.

“The decision to conduct an open tender came directly from the prime minister’s office,” a source with knowledge of the project tells MEED.

According to the source, they expect competing developers particularly from China, Japan and potentially Italy to prequalify for the monorail contracts despite the on and off negotiations with Bombardier.

Egypt plans to build and modernise thousands of kilometres of rail track in line with strengthening its logistics sector and enabling safer and more efficient public transport system for its citizens.