Daniel Terungwa
Egypt’s central bank has launched a $948.8m initiative to help car owners convert their vehicles to natural gas. pushing ahead with a call by the country’s president earlier last year.
The loans, which comes with an interest rate of 3%, will be provided through banks to individuals seeking to replace their gasoline-powered vehicles to a bi-fuel system that also allows the use on natural gas, it said in a statement. The financing is available for periods between seven to 10 years.
The move is part of a broader push by the government to encourage the conversion of as many as 1.3 million private cars.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi last year said the country will require new cars to operate on natural gas before they receive a license, stressing the move will help reduce middle-income families’ fuel bills by half.