Suez Canal revenues recorded $3.267 billion during first seven months of FY 2014/2015 (to end June 30), the official statistical bulletin of the canal announced.
In August, revenues from the canal hit an all-time record of $510 million.
The waterway is one of Egypt’s core sources of income, providing about 10 percent of the nation’s hard currency. In 2014, Suez Canal revenues registered $5.456 billion, marking 6.75 percent growth compared to $5.111 billion a year earlier, Egypt’s State-owned news agency MENA reported last month.
Earlier in August, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi launched a multi-billion dollar Suez Canal expansion project called “the New Suez Canal” in an attempt to revive Egypt’s limping economy. The project will establish a new 72-kilometer canal parallel to the current one to speed up transit time.
The Suez Canal expansion is expected to boost annual revenue up to $13.5 billion by 2023.
The Suez Canal Axis Development project is separate from the expansion project, and aims to develop the area surrounding the Suez Canal. It is expected to fuel global trade and reduce shipping costs, the minister added in an official Thursday statement.
Planners hope the axis will take advantage of Egypt’s geographical location to revive the nation’s economy by establishing economic and logistical hubs.
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