European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering to provide a EUR250 million (US$296.86 million) loan to the Arab Republic of Egypt for the upgrade and electrification of an existing rail line connecting downtown Alexandria and north-eastern town Abou Qir (Abou Qir line) into a high capacity metro system.

The EBRD loan will finance infrastructure works for the upgrade and the electrification of the line, relevant rail systems, including the upgrade of signaling, telecommunications and centralized control systems, and rolling stock to be operated on the new metro system. As a result, the new system will save an average of 21,930 tonnes of CO2 per year due to the modal shift of road vehicles and the diesel train to the electrified metro system. 

The project is part of an overall investment package estimated at EUR1.6 billion (US$1.89 billion), which is expected to be co-financed by the European Investment Bank, the Agence Francaise de Development and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.