A major $2.3bn financing deal for the Cairo Monorail project in Egypt has been granted by the UK Government. This will help support an English plant ahead of its upcoming fusion with French train manufacturer Alstom.
Bombardier said that the funds will be invested in the factory in Derby after securing a $2.9bn train construction contract for new monorail lines in Cairo, reported Bloomberg.
The grant will directly support nearly 100 jobs at the 2,000-strong plant.
With an exit from the EU looming, Britain is expanding the role of the UK Export Finance (UKEF) to promote global trade links.
UKEF also recently provided loans to British Airways and EasyJet. The Egyptian deal will mark the first export of UK-built trains in more than 12 years. It will also improve the Litchurch Lane plant before the Alstom buyout of Berlin-based Bombardier Transportation.
According to the French company, whose last UK train factory closed down in 2004, the acquisition will conclude on the 29th of January.
Following the Bombardier deal, UKEF is assuring 80% of borrowing, which will amount to €2.5bn, from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and other lenders.
UKEF spokesperson Robert Maccabe told Bloomberg that export credit is customary for such projects and privately accessing such funding would have been difficult for the firm. He also stated that the terms of the deal needed a specified amount of British content in the trains.
Spokesman Will Tanner told Bloomberg that around 1,000 rail cars are expected to be built at the Derby plant this year. The project will see it through to next year, discounting the monorail contract.
Image: Bombardier
