Egyptian investment company Qalaa Holdings and Italian gas company Edison signed a Joint Development Agreement on Thursday to build a 180 MW power plant in Egypt.

Edison said in a press release that the project value stands at 100 million euros ($110 million).

“Egypt is a key country for the international activities of Edison, and we have invested two billion dollars in the last six years,” said Bruno Lescoeur, Chief Operating Officer of Edison.

Egypt’s Premier, Ibrahim Mahlab, who attended the signing of the deal, is on a three-day visit aimed at landing energy deals and reaffirming strong ties with Italy.

Egypt has suffered from an energy crunch since the summer of 2008, but the sector took a blow following the 2011 uprising as arrears to foreign oil firms accumulated and production slowed.

The Arab country garnered some $40 billion in energy deals during a development conference held last March as part of the government’s plans to boost an economy battered by more than four years of political upheaval.

Italy is one of Egypt’s largest trading partners with $6 billion worth of mutual trading value in the 2014 fiscal year, Central Bank data shows.

Source: Ahram Online