The Energy and Environment committee to the Egyptian house of representatives, led by Talaat El Sewedi, approved a $108m loan from the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), with an interest rate of 2.5% and a 20-year repayment period, which will be used to fund South Helwan power plant project, Al Borsa News reported. The power plant in Atfih sub-governorate is expected to add approximately 1,950 MW to Egypt’s national grid.

A source from the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity stated that the ministry has a grace period of five years before payback installments on the loan are due.

In March 2016, the Minister of International Cooperation, Sahar Nasr, and the General Director of KFAED, Mr. Abdulwahab Ahmed Al-Bader, signed the loan agreement. The total cost of the project is $1.7b and will be funded through a financing package provided by Arab and international institutions, on top of which are the World Bank and the Islamic Development Bank, according to a press release on the Ministry’s website.