The public relations manager of the Suez Canal authority, Hassan Refat, has given the “green light” to begin work on a project aimed at deepening and expanding the canal. The goal of this project is to enable the passage of larger vessels through the canal.
According to Al-Bayan daily, the Egyptian Prime Minister, Ataf Ubeid, said that the project would make it possible for the canal to accommodate 62-foot deep vessels, and not be limited to 60-foot deep vessels.
According to the latest figures released by IDSC, the number of vessels passing through the Suez Canal in June, 2000 was 1169, weighing a total of 38 million tons. Preliminary figures show that the receipts from the canal for this period were $162.8 million, a slight increase compared to the previous month, which had receipts of $160.9 million. –(Albawaba-MEBG)
