Egypt runs 1st trial ship passage in New Suez Canal

Egypt started Saturday the trial operation of its New New Suez Canal with the transit of three giant ships, less than two weeks before the waterway opens for international navigation.

"This is the first passage of huge ships through the New Suez Canal, which reflects the success of the project," Ahmed Abdel-Moneim, the Suez Canal Authority's public relations officer, told Xinhua.

The three ships that transited the new waterway were from Singapore, Luxemburg and Bahrain, he added.

On August 6 last year, Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi gave the go-ahead signal for the national "New Suez canal" project, which is a newly-dug 35-km waterway alongside the original 190-km Suez Canal, plus a 37-km expansion and deepening of some parts of the original one.

Sisi gave a one-year strict deadline for the New Suez Canal to be opened for ship transit.

August 6 was set for the opening ceremony of the new canal, which will be attended by top officials from all over the world, including state heads.

"The inauguration will be done on time as all dry digging and dredging works have been 100 percent successfully completed," the official told Xinhua.

Parallel to the original Suez Canal, the new canal is expected to help revive Egypt's ailing economy by increasing annual ship traffic revenues from 5.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2015 to 13.2 billion by 2023, luring huge foreign investments and creating thousands of job opportunities.

The future investment projects in the Suez Canal surrounding region are also expected to bring the country billions of dollars every year. Endit