British Ambassador visits Derby-built Cairo Monorail part of £2.3 billion contract
The British Ambassador to Egypt witnessed the UK's cutting-edge work in Cairo's new monorail system, underscoring UK-Egypt trade cooperation.
Derby continues to shine on the global stage and bolster relations with strategic partnerships the world over.
Alstom, one of the UK’s leaders in smart and sustainable mobility – together with its partners – welcomed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt, Gareth Bayley OBE, to witness the construction of the new Cairo Monorail system.
As part of the visit in September 2024, he was able to enjoy a test run inside one of the British-built four-car Alstom Innovia 300 units that will serve passengers along the 61-mile-long network once operational.
The British Ambassador was joined by the Egyptian Deputy Minister of Transport, Wagdy Radwan, and Chairman of the National Authority for Tunnels, Dr. Gen. Tarek H. Gewaily.
They also visited Alstom’s main workshop and control centre, as well as one of the system’s 35 stations.
The Cairo Monorail trains were assembled and tested at Alstom’s historic Derby Litchurch Lane Works as part of a £2.3 billion contract to construct and run the new Egyptian network.
This marked the first export of UK-manufactured rolling stock since Derby-built trains were supplied to South Africa for the Gautrain rail system in 2008.
In total, 272 monorail cars for Cairo were assembled and tested in Derby, which is also home to Alstom’s Global Centre of Excellence for Monorail.
“I was impressed by my visit to Cairo’s brand-new Monorail where I tested the cutting-edge train carriages that the brilliant Alstom team have produced,” said Gareth Bayley OBE, His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt.
He added: “This project is an excellent example of the growing UK-Egypt trade cooperation and highlights the UK’s support for Egypt’s ambitions in providing greener and more sustainable solutions and services to its people.”
In January 2024, the team in Derby celebrated the completion of the final Cairo Monorail car off the production lines.
The monorail project is reported to have supported hundreds of jobs at Alstom and across the UK.
Rolling stock has been delivered from the UK to the Cairo depots in accordance with scheduling and budgetary requirements.
Alstom’s Derby Litchurch Lane Works is one of the UK’s largest and longest established train factories.
It is considered to be the only facility in Britain able to design, engineer, build and test trains for domestic and export markets.
The first train was dispatched from the Litchurch Lane site on 14 June 2021 – which was 20 months post-contract signature – with the last train departing on 16 January 2024.
Leaving Derby by road to Felixstowe, it shipped to Alexandria before being transported to Cairo.
Ben Lezala is Cairo Monorail Project Director at Alstom.
He said: “We were honoured to welcome the British Ambassador, along with the Egyptian Deputy Minister of Transport and Chairman of the National Authority for Tunnels, for a site tour of our advanced monorail system.
“This visit was a testament to the strong partnership between the UK and Egypt, reflecting our shared commitment to innovative infrastructure projects for the country.”
He added: “Our discussions underscored the importance of collaborative efforts in driving environmentally friendly mobility forward.
“By working together, we are developing integrated transport solutions that not only enhance efficiency and connectivity but also promote sustainable practices, contributing to the development of smarter and more resilient cities that meet the growing demands of urban populations.”