British Water has agreed a Memorandum of Understanding with Egypt to establish a framework for bilateral cooperation on water projects including provision for 40 new cities under development across Egypt including a new capital city
British Water said the memorandum will “make it easier for the UK water industry to participate in the opportunities in Egypt, and for Egyptian companies to access UK knowledge and experience.”
The agreement was signed by British Water chair, Dr Mark Fletcher, and Egypt’s deputy minister for infrastructure, Dr Sayed Ismail, in London. “Egypt’s water and sanitation sector is undergoing a huge transformation and we need the expertise of British companies,” He added: “expertise from the UK water sector and supply chain was urgently needed to help Egypt’s ambitious modernisation plans on desalination, water reuse, sludge-to-energy retrieval, and investment in human capital.” He went on to say the development will require “extensive water and sanitation infrastructure, technologies and services.”
“We are particularly interested in working with British companies on two key technologies - desalination and sludge-to-energy. We want to close the loop by generating energy and increasing water reuse while minimising costs,” said Ismail.
Investment in desalination is critical to Egypt’s plans for a more sustainable water future, he explained. There are plans for around 20 new desalination plants across the country, which the Egyptian government plans to build in collaboration with the private sector.
Ismail said 90% of Egypt’s drinking water is taken from the Nile, “but we need to diversify our other resources, especially in coastal areas, the north of Egypt and the eastern borders near the Red Sea. This is where we see desalination playing a significant role.”
While undertaking rapid expansion, the Egyptian government wants to build the capacity of the employees in the water and sanitation sector, specifically in areas like facility management and service delivery. Fletcher said, “This partnership will open many more doors for our members, who have a depth of experience and expertise.
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