tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2877698188774561460.post2376697368047130198..comments2023-11-06T17:59:14.655+02:00Comments on Eco R Geo: New Suez Canal test operation to start Saturdayantixronoshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17321757470762094126noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2877698188774561460.post-60759060304533273342015-07-25T23:25:33.044+03:002015-07-25T23:25:33.044+03:00The first cargo ships passed through Egypt's N...The first cargo ships passed through Egypt's New Suez Canal on Saturday in a test-run before it opens next month, state media reported, 11 months after the army began constructing the $8 billion canal alongside the existing 145-year-old Suez Canal...<br /><br />The new waterway, which President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hopes will help expand trade along the fastest shipping route between Europe and Asia and give a boost to Egypt's economy, will be formally inaugurated on Aug. 6.<br /><br />Sisi wants the canal to become a symbol of national pride and to help combat Egypt's double-digit unemployment. The old Suez Canal is already a vital source of hard currency for Egypt, which has seen tourism and foreign investment drain away in the years of turmoil since a 2011 uprising.<br />jpost.com by ReutersAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com