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Tuesday, 12 December 2017

Dabaa nuclear power plant and the possible resumption of Russian tourism are the talk of the town

The reality of the Dabaa nuclear power plant and its connection to the resumption of Russian tourism reigned supreme on the airwaves last night.

The Dabaa contracts that were signed last night officially kickstarted the project, which now enters the design phase, Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker told Al Hayah Al Youm’s Tamer Amin. Egypt and Russia have been in prolonged discussions over the technical and financial details of the project for the past year and a half, Shaker noted, but Russian teams have already started studies of the project site (watch, runtime: 5:13).

Kol Youm’s Amr Adib was more concerned with the Russian Industrial Zone than the Dabaa facility, saying that the former is more beneficial to the Egyptian economy since it’s an industrial project that will create jobs, boost exports, and bring in foreign currency (watch, runtime: 3:45). He did take note, however, of some key points of the agreement over the nuclear plant, including that Russia is lending us USD 25 bn to cover the costs of the plant and that the loan carries a 3% yearly interest rate (watch, runtime: 7:24).

The resumption of Russian flights to Egypt seems more likely now, since Russian Transport Minister Maksim Sokolov gave an official statement that he expects direct trips between Moscow and Cairo to resume in February, House Tourism Committee President Sahar Talaat Mostafa told Masaa DMC’s Eman El Hosary. Mostafa had little information, but still said the two countries are expected to sign a protocol within a week to get the ball rolling on bringing back Russian holidaymakers (watch, runtime: 5:27).

Hona Al Asema’s Lamees Al Hadidi delved further into the potential return of Russian tourism with Blue Sky Chairman Hossam El Shaer, who said that resuming direct flights to Cairo is only a first step. The more important goal is to bring back flights to Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada, which could reel in as many as 2 mn Russian tourists per year, especially if charter flights are back in the air.

Egypt’s tourism industry needs to awaken from its slumber and begin preparing as soon as possible for the potential influx of tourists, El Shaer stressed. Multiple hotels have either been shut down or require extensive upgrade work, but the CBE’s initiative to provide affordable financing for the tourism industry has flopped, according to El Shaer (watch, runtime: 7:14).

Lamees also spoke to Trade and Industry Minister Tarek Kabil about the World Trade Organization’s ministerial conference in Buenos Aires. The minister said developed and developing countries did not find common ground on their respective needs. Egypt has been rallying Arab and African countries to present a united front in that regard to give developing countries a significant voice in negotiations. One of the main points of contention between the two sides is implementing legislation to regulate storage of foodstuffs — countries like Egypt store large amounts of agricultural products for its local food security, while others store these products for exports that can impact global prices and trade volumes (watch, runtime: 5:46).

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