Egypt eyes $1B Japanese loan for phase 2 of Metro Line 4
The Egyptian government is negotiating a $1 billion soft loan from Japan to finance the foreign components for Phase 2 of Cairo Metro’s Line 4, known as the Haram Metro, a member of the board of directors of the National Authority for Tunnels (NAT) confirmed to Al Manassa.
The agreement highlights Cairo’s ongoing strategy of leveraging long-term concessional loans for specialized foreign equipment, shielding the state budget from immediate foreign exchange pressure while funding domestic construction in local currency.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said NAT expects to settle the loan’s final details by year-end and draft the agreement next year. In parallel, the authority will issue an international tender to select a contractor to execute the foreign-funded scope.
Japanese involvement will be limited to specialized tasks to curb execution costs, primarily the procurement and assembly of rolling stock, electromechanical systems, and signaling equipment for which no domestic alternative exists.
In return, five Egyptian contractors will execute all civil engineering works, including tunnel excavation, basic infrastructure, and communications systems.
The total cost of the second phase of the fourth line is estimated at $4.5 billion, the source added. The $1 billion Japanese loan will cover the foreign procurement component, while the remaining materials and services will be supplied by domestic factories in Egyptian pounds.
NAT currently relies on seven domestic factories to supply its metro and rail networks, allowing the state to maximize local manufacturing content across major transport initiatives, he explained.
According to NAT data, Phase 2 will stretch 26.9 kilometers across vital Cairo transit corridors, serving 15 underground and six elevated stations.
The Ministry of Transport routinely structures major infrastructure projects like metro lines by pairing soft loans for foreign technical components with government-funded domestic execution.
This marks the second major Japanese commitment for Line 4. The ministry previously secured a soft loan exceeding $1.2 billion from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to fund Phase 1, which is scheduled for completion next year.
The 18-kilometer first phase features 17 stations, with civil construction handled by five Egyptian firms: Petrojet, Concord, The Arab Contractors, Orascom Construction, and Hassan Allam. Mitsubishi Corporation is supplying 23 trains and installing electromechanical systems along a six-kilometer section.