Qatari Diar, the real estate division of Doha’s sovereign wealth fund, will enter into a collaboration agreement to develop a project on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast with assets worth $29.7 billion.
Egypt has long pushed for foreign investments, particularly from affluent Gulf States, in an effort to address its massive budget deficit and high foreign debt.
The project intends to transform Alam Al-Roum, an undeveloped coastline 480 kilometers (300 miles) northeast of Cairo, into a year-round destination that will draw tourists from around the world.
It will include upscale neighborhoods, golf courses, marinas, educational institutions, and government buildings.
The agreement with Egypt’s New Urban Communities Authority calls for a payment of $3.5 billion for the property and an in-kind investment of $26.2 billion to construct the project, which will span 1,985 hectares (4,900 acres) over a 7.2 km stretch of shoreline.
Since promising to invest $7.5 billion earlier this year, Qatar’s first major investment in Egypt’s faltering economy is the massive urban development project in the country’s eastern Matrouh Governorate.
The development is anticipated to bring in at least $1.8 billion annually, of which 15% will go to the New Urban Communities Authority once the business has recovered its whole investment cost.
After declining earlier in the day, Egypt’s state bonds saw gains of up to 0.4 cents, opening a new page with the 2050 maturity bid at 94 cents on the dollar.
