NAT has been allocated £E 9bn ($US 1.26bn) for the £E 11bn project to extend Line 3 to Cairo Airport, which is expected to take three years to complete, and £E 7bn to purchase additional trains for Line 3.

In addition, NAT has signed a contract with Vinci Construction France to implement the fourth phase of Line 3, which will extend the line by 5.1km from Haroun to Nozha 2. NAT has also awarded a contract to Orascom Construction Industries and Arab Contractors to build a 6.3km surface section from Nozha 2 to Al-Salam in the 10th City of Ramadan.

According to NAT's chairman Mr Ismail El Nagdy, who was speaking to Daily News Egypt, NAT is currently finalising the financial and technical parts of offers submitted to implement the third phase of Line 3 from Attaba 4km west to Kit Kat, and that the winners will be announced within two months to enable tunnelling to start next year. The extension is expected to take three years to construct.

El Nagdy confirmed that the government will fund 50% of the project, while the European Investment Bank will provide €600m and the French Development Agency €300m.

El Nagdy says a total of £E 80bn is required to fund the first phase of Line 4 in Cairo, and to build metro lines in Ismailia and Port Said. However, bidding for phase one of Line 4 has been postponed until May to enable Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) to complete a feasibility study and allow other issues to be resolved. Jica will provide a $US 1.2bn loan to fund 50% of phase one while the government will fund the rest.

The 19km first phase of Line 4 will run from El-Malek El-Saleh on Line 1, via Giza on Line 2, west to Remaya Square.